


The revenge of Fisk and the Throwing Star Killer

by Aragorn_II_Elessar



Series: The Devil and The Archer [3]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012), Daredevil (TV)
Genre: Alternate Season/Series 03, Alternate Season/Series 06, Gen, Revenge, Team-up between villains, Torture for poor Matt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-11-19
Packaged: 2019-08-04 16:36:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 85,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16350251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aragorn_II_Elessar/pseuds/Aragorn_II_Elessar
Summary: Adrian Chase escapes from Lian Yu with the intention of wreaking his vengeance on the man who thwarted his plan- Matt Murdock aka Daredevil. For that, he decides to team up with the one man who hates Matt more than he does- Wilson Fisk. Sequel to 'The Devil of Star City.' Part 2 of 'The Devil and The Archer' series.





	1. Old threat and new threat

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> So finally, the sequel to 'The Devil of Star City.' This is going to be a bit of a slow burn in the first few chapters but it will get better later.
> 
> Now I have turned this into a series which I call- 'The Devil and The Archer.'
> 
> You will get spoilers for 'Daredevil Season 3' after Chapter 3.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver and Matt are living normal lives on their Earths. But it won't last long.

 

Star City, Earth-1

It was silent at the docks. Though the silence was not going to last much longer due to what was about to happen there.

Some men were standing guard, holding guns in their hands. They were there on a job. And they were going to leave only when the job was finished. Or thwarted.

Suddenly, an arrow burst out from the water and hit one of them, sending him down. The others ran up to the edge and fired into the water.

But one by one, they were all hit by arrows and were out. A line shot out of the water and a figure leapt out, gripping it with his left hand. He landed on the ground in a crouching position. The Green Arrow had arrived.

A man aimed at him but he fired first, putting him down. He then quickly fired at a man who was trying to shoot him from above, taking him down too. Another man, who was standing right in front of him, aimed but he took him down too with an arrow.

"I'm on site", he said to his team via earpiece, "No sign of Faust."

On another corner of the docks, an armed thug was gunned down by a man wearing a helmet. He was none other than Spartan.

"He's not at his last known either", Spartan said to Green Arrow via earpiece.

"Well, his ordnance is", Green Arrow said, making Spartan comment, "If Faust is moving from bombs to missiles, it makes you wonder what else he's changed up."

"Exactly. Stay sharp", Green Arrow said as he moved further in.

As Spartan prepared to move, a thug aimed at him from behind. But before he could fire, someone fired at him and he was thrown away by a few feet before falling down unconscious.

"Boss says stay sharp, Hoss", said a man wearing a black suit with a red chest-plate on it along with some yellow flares. His face was covered by a metallic hockey mask. He reloaded his shotgun. He was Wild Dog, with an upgraded suit.

Another man aimed at Wild Dog but he was taken down by a red arrow. It was Arsenal.

"I guess you should be a little sharper", Arsenal said to Wild Dog with a smirk as he flexed his metal arm.

Green Arrow ducked to avoid a man's punch and smacked his legs with his bow, making him fall. He then smacked his face with it, knocking him out.

He then turned around and fired at another man, putting him down. That moment, he heard a loud sound of fuel being ignited in a missile. He turned around and looked at the ballistic missile being fired.

The leader of the terrorists- Alex Faust, looked down on him with a smirk and said, "That's an MGM-140. It's fire and forget. You can't stop it. You can't disarm it."

At that moment, another man tried to sneak up on Green Arrow but before he could do a thing, he was hit by sonic waves and thrown into the water.

Green Arrow turned around to look at the one who had helped him- Black Siren. She was wearing the same suit she had worn when she had first arrived on this Earth, with the addition of a domino mask that resembled the one worn by her deceased doppelganger.

Green Arrow nodded at her in thanks and she nodded back. He then turned around and fired two arrows. They hit Faust's arms and pinned him to the pillar.

"I can't do anything about it", Green Arrow said to Faust, "But I have a very smart friend who can."

On a rooftop, Mister Terrific looked at the missile and threw his T-Sphere at it. The sphere followed the missile.

"My T-Sphere's spoofed the missile's guided system", Mister Terrific said to the others via earpiece, "I'm drawing it back to the water."

A moment later, the missile returned to where it was fired from and exploded above the water as Green Arrow, Black Siren and Faust watched.

Green Arrow stared at it even after the sparks had died down.

"You look unpleasant", Faust taunted him, "As if the detonation stirred unpleasant memories."

* * *

Many months ago

_Oliver and Matt stood on a boat. Oliver was hugging his son tightly, having saved him from the madman who was sitting in front of them- Adrian Chase._

" _You won", Chase said with a smirk, "Your son has his father back, and he learned exactly who his father was just like you learned who your father was right here on these very same waters."_

" _What?" asked Oliver._

" _William's younger than you were so he's gonna be fine", said Adrian as he looked at them, "And you have each other."_

" _What are you saying?" asked Matt._

" _Which is good, Oliver", said Adrian, "It's good."_

_Adrian then took out a gun and said, "Because it's gonna be lonely-"_

_Matt quickly pulled out his club and threw it at Adrian's hand, disarming him of his gun. Before Adrian could react, Matt kicked the gun away into the water._

_Adrian looked at Matt hatefully and said, "Amazing. A 4-year old plan undone because a blind vigilante from another Earth happened to be thrown over here and now here you are, victorious."_

_Before Adrian could say another word, Oliver walked over to him and with a hard punch that broke his nose, knocked him out._

* * *

Now

Green Arrow sighed in relief, reminding himself that the explosion hadn't happened, though he was haunted by nightmares about that possibility every single night.

"It didn't stir unpleasant memories", Green Arrow said to Faust, "Just made me relieved that something terrible did not come to pass."

He then knocked Faust out with a punch.

* * *

Later, Oliver stood in the lair, looking over at the suits, while he himself was wearing a formal suit.

Rene walked over to him and gave him a file. Oliver took it and asked, "What's this?"

"Remarks for the Police Academy Graduation Ceremony", Rene said before commenting, "Seems my promotion came with speech-writing duties."

Some months ago, Thea had left the job at the council to help Roy take care of his daughter- Liam, whom she loved like her own. Roy himself had left his job under Oliver and didn't go out much in the field.

"You can write?" Curtis asked.

"You can read?" Laurel asked with a smirk.

"I can kick both of y'all asses is what I can do", Rene said to them.

"Oooh!" Laurel smirked, "Let's see how much you can kick."

"No need for much of a fight", John said to them, though he knew it was just some playful banter.

"This is uh- this is really good, Rene", Oliver said as he looked over at the file.

"It's like I keep telling you, Hoss", Rene said to him, "I've got the soul of a poet."

"And Matt can see with his eyes", Roy said with a smirk.

"When did he start seeing?" Felicity asked as she walked in, carrying bags of Big Belly Burgers.

"You totally missed me redirecting a ballistic missile". Curtis said to her.

"Well, I've already seen you do that once", Felicity said as she handed everyone their Big Belly Burgers before picking up the one she planned to eat herself.

"Sorry I've been MIA", she said to Oliver, "I pretty much had to knock my mother out to get her on a plane back to Vegas. She did not want to go."

"That's fine", Oliver said, "We had it handled."

"Yeah", Rene agreed, "Even without Dinah on the field."

"Come a long way in a year", John said.

"It almost makes me grateful for all the times Matt and Oliver kicked our asses", Curtis said, "Almost."

"I'm gonna go home", said Roy, "Thea and Liam are waiting."

"I'm gonna go too", Rene said, "Zoey is waiting."

John, Curtis and Felicity followed the two out, holding their bags of Big Belly Burgers.

"So", Oliver said to Laurel, "You were good out there."

"Well", said Laurel, "I am that way only because you allowed me to turn over a new leaf."

"And I hope I made the right choice", Oliver said.

"I will do everything to prove to you that you did", Laurel said to him sincerely.

"You don't need to", Oliver said, "You have done enough in the last few months."

Oliver gave her a smile to assure her he meant what he said.

Laurel nodded with a smile of her own.

"Well", Oliver said as he gestured to his bag of Big Belly Burger, "I'm gonna go share this with Samantha and William."

He then walked out while she decided to go too, to eat the snack with Quentin, with whom she had a decent relationship by now.

* * *

"That food is junk", Samantha said as she looked at the bag Oliver was holding.

"That's why kids like it, Samantha", Oliver quipped before asking, "How's he doing?"

"He's fine", Samantha said, "New school's a bit hard but he's fine."

"Good to know", Oliver said. As he walked in, William ran up to him and hugged him. With a smile, he said, "Hi, dad."

"Hey buddy", Oliver said with an affectionate smile, "Want some Big Belly Burger?"

William's eyes lit up at the name of his favorite snack, "Of course."

Later, the three ate and Oliver asked William, "How's school?"

"It's fine, dad", William said.

"Making friends?" Oliver asked.

"Trying to", William replied.

"Just make sure none of them are like your dad", Samantha said with a chuckle.

"Dad, can you teach me archery?" William asked.

"No!" Oliver and Samantha said simultaneously.

"I guess that means no archery", William muttered as he took another bite.

"This weekend, let's go see a rocket game", Oliver said, "You know, as Mayor, I get pretty good seats."

"I would love that, dad", William said with a smile.

* * *

Later, Oliver reached home and walked inside. He sensed someone in the living room and was immediately on guard.

But then the intruder turned on the light, revealing himself to be a tall man with an eyepatch.

"Hey, kid", he said to Oliver, his hands inside the pockets of his coat.

"Hello, Slade", Oliver said to him as he relaxed, "What are you doing here?"

"I popped by to say that the Intel you gave me on my son, Joe, it panned out", Slade told him, "So I'm heading to Calgary."

"Well, that's great", Oliver said sincerely with a smile, "I'm very, uh- I'm happy for you, and I hope you find what you're looking for."

"I hope that too", said Slade, "How are things between you and your son?"

"Good", Oliver said.

"I just want to tell you kid", Slade said, "Be patient but prepared."

"For what?" Oliver asked.

"Choosing between the man that the people need you to be or the father that your son needs to be", Slade advised him.

"What do you mean by that?" Oliver asked.

"You and I walk between two worlds", Slade said, "But as your sister has proven, we can only do that for so long."

The two shook hands and Slade said, sincerely "Good luck, Mr. Queen."

"Good luck, Slade", Oliver said sincerely. He then watched as Slade walked out of the house.

At that moment, his cell phone vibrated. He picked it up and Felicity said from the other end, "Turn on Channel 52 right now."

"Okay", Oliver said and turned the channel on. The headline made his head spin in shock and horror.

" _Green Arrow Identified."_

The reporter said, "With the discovery of a shocking photograph which finally seems to solve the mystery haunting Star City for the past 2 years- who is the Green Arrow? This photo, which was obtained exclusively by Channel 52 provides unequivocal proof of the identity of the Green Arrow."

And then a photo of Green Arrow appeared on the screen, without the mask or hood on him. The face was crystal clear- Oliver Queen.

"Oliver", Felicity said from the other end in a shaky voice, "What are we gonna do?"

"I- I don't know."

* * *

Hell's Kitchen, Earth-199999

A man was jumping around Hell's Kitchen, wearing a red suit that had protrusions on the top, resembling the Devil's horns. He was Daredevil, or as he was sometimes called- The Devil of Hell's Kitchen.

His sightless eyes caught nothing, so he did not see the mugging in progress short yards below, rather he heard it with his enhanced senses.

"Look, I don't got no cash in the store", the shopkeeper said as a young man held him by the collar inside his shop, "I'm closing up, sent a boy down to the bank."

"Pops, you're not playing nice with Willie boy", the young man said before angrily slamming the shopkeeper against the wall, making him fall down, "And Willie boy is no man's fool. The bank closes early on Tuesdays, buster, and besides, you don't have a boy working here."

As his two friends stood guard, Willie walked up to the shopkeeper and said, "We know all about you, pops, how you got yourself a gun behind that cash register of yours, and how you shot yourself a thief with your fancy little colt, and how the punk died, spitting up his guts in a cop ambulance. Know something else, pops?"

Willie then stood over him and yelled, "THE PUNK WAS MY BROTHER!"

"And you're going to avenge him, Willie?" asked a voice behind him as he heard two crashes.

He turned around to see both his friends had been kicked away to opposite corners and were lying there, unconscious. In their place, stood a figure clad in red.

"Daredevil!" he said in fear as he took out his gun. He then angrily fired at him but he flipped to avoid the shots. Willie tried to justify himself, "My brother was a good kid, never tried anything on anyone, he made one little mistake- just one- and it cost him all!"

"It only takes one mistake", Daredevil said as he smacked Willie's hand, disarming him of the gun, "And maybe that mistake was yours, maybe you should have been teaching him to cope, instead of showing him how to lose!"

He then leapt in the air and gave Willie a flip kick, throwing him into a corner and knocking him out.

Turning to the shopkeeper he growled, "In a way, you're as bad as Willie. And next time, you may not be so lucky."

The shopkeeper gulped nervously as Daredevil disappeared into the night.

* * *

Later, Matt Murdock entered his apartment and sat on his couch peacefully. He felt better now than he ever had in the last three years. His life was good now. He was Daredevil. He had his friends, and he had his job. Elektra also visited him once a month and she would make it permanent once the remnants of the Hand were dealt with.

Matt also missed the friends he had made on another Earth- especially Oliver Queen. That man was just like him. Maybe he would pay them a visit someday.

* * *

Lian Yu, Earth-1

Adrian Chase was pacing around in his cell. All this time, he kept thinking about the time his plan had almost succeeded. Almost.

He fumed in anger at the man who had caused it to fail- Matt Murdock. His only goal now was to get out and make his life a living hell now.

He then heard some gunshots and screams of pain. The door to his cell opened and a man walked in. He sported dragon tattoos on both sides of his neck.

"Mr. Diaz", Chase said to him with a smirk.

"Mr. Chase", Ricardo Diaz said to him with a matching smirk, "I got your message. And your money."

"I guess you liked my offer", Adrian said.

"I did", Ricardo told him, "I have already done the first thing you asked me to do and now, I'm getting you out of here."

And then Ricardo and his men lead Adrian to a chopper which was piloted by one of Ricardo's men.

"So what's the rest of the plan?" Ricardo asked once they were in the air.

With a deeply disturbing smirk, Chase said, "The plan is… very interesting."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the first chapter is done. Like I said, a bit of a slow burn. But I hope it was good.
> 
> Earth-2 Laurel has the same cover story she had in 6x15 so everyone knows about her.
> 
> By the way, I wrote an anti-WestAllen one-shot called 'Are you serious?' which is set in this universe. If you hate WestAllen and Iris in the show, feel free to check it out.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	2. Identity revealed?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver deals with the fallout of the photo on the news as a new player arrives in town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, comments and hits.

Oliver entered City Hall and saw a swarm of reporters already there, waiting for him. That didn't surprise him.

"Anything interesting on the news last night?" he quipped.

The reporters then all started throwing question after question on him as he waded through them and stood between Quentin and Rene.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please", he said loudly, "If you want to hear what I have to say, it would probably help if you could hear me."

That silenced them temporarily and he said, "Thank you. I'm gonna tell you 2 things now, both of which you probably already know. First. This is important. I am not the Green Arrow."

"If you are not the Green Arrow, then who is?" a female reporter asked him.

"Number two", Oliver said, ignoring her question, "Photos can be doctored. They could have put Bruce Wayne's head on that body. Has Bruce Wayne left Gotham to hang out in Star City recently? No. Now if I was running around the city during the day and managing it as Mayor while running around at night frightening criminals as a vigilante, that really would make me a superhero, but I'm not. I'm just the Mayor. Thank you very much."

As the reporters started clamoring, throwing more questions, Oliver walked away with Quentin and Rene.

"You seem to be taking this in your stride", Quentin said as the three walked up the stairs.

"I've been here before with you", Oliver pointed out.

"Ugh", Quentin groaned at being reminded of that time, "Yeah, but I didn't have a photograph of you in flagrante-de arrow."

"Where did Channel 52 get the photo?" Oliver asked them.

"Anonymous source", Rene replied, "Arrived in yesterday's mail, no return address."

"Let's get this envelope to forensics, figure out who did this", Oliver ordered as the three walked into the lift.

"And why", Quentin added.

As the three reached their floor, Oliver said, "Can't let this distract us. Where are we with rebuilding the SCPD?"

"Well, I fast-tracked the insurance claim", Rene said, "So we should have 20 million burning a hole in the account by the end of the day."

""Our" account?" Quentin asked him incredulously.

"I figure we peel off a few bucks and fly off to Vegas", Rene joked, "Heh, heh, heh."

"That's cute", Quentin joked, "Think it might look a little suspicious if Oliver left town right about now."

"I need to be in town for the Markovian delegation", Oliver pointed out.

As he walked into his office with Quentin, Rene jokingly asked, "So it's all right for me to go to Vegas is what you're saying?"

As the two entered the office, they were surprised to see a dark-skinned woman waiting for them.

"Hello", Oliver said to her as she turned to them, showing her unpleasant expression, "I don't think you have an appointment."

"No", the woman said as she walked closer, "But I don't really need one."

She then took out her badge, revealing herself to be an F.B.I. agent, "Special Agent Samanda Watson."

"Uh, can we help you with something?" Quentin asked her wearily.

"Not really", she said arrogantly, "I'm here as a courtesy to inform you of the investigation I'll be conducting into your city."

"Investigation into what?" Oliver asked, though he felt like he already knew the answer.

"You", Watson said bluntly.

"Ohh", Quentin groaned, "You've got to be kidding."

"Yes", Watson said sarcastically, "Because the FBI is known all over the world for its sense of humor", she then adopted a serious tone, "You were on the news last night, wearing the outfit of a known criminal. Can you honestly say you're surprised there's an investigation?"

"No", Oliver said, "But I wasn't expecting the FBI."

"The local authorities have proven ineffective where the Green Arrow is concerned", Samanda pointed out.

"Uh, Agent Watson?"

"Yes."

"I was cleared 5 years ago", Oliver said.

"Of being The Hood", Watson pointed out, "Not the Green Arrow. And you were cleared by the guy who's now your Deputy Mayor."

"Would you like me to send a copy of the polygraph Mr. Queen passed?" Quentin asked to which she replied, "For starters. The local AG will be issuing subpoenas later on today. It was nice seeing you, gentlemen. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other."

And then she walked away, leaving behind the stunned Mayor and Deputy Mayor.

* * *

Later, Rene walked up to the two, holding the envelope and said, "It came from nowhere."

"What do you mean?" Quentin asked as Oliver looked at him.

"This envelope wasn't mailed, delivered or sent", Rene revealed, "It came from inside the channel 52 news offices."

"How do we know that?" Oliver asked as he got up.

"Bar code", Rene revealed as he showed it to them on the back of the envelope, "Channel 52 uses it for internal traffic."

"How many people work there?" Quentin asked.

"568."

With a sigh, Quentin said, "I'm just gonna say it. What if this was Chase, huh? He could have put this in motion months ago."

As Oliver sighed, Rene said, "Seems like his style, messing with you like this."

"It is more than possible", Oliver admitted.

"How is your boy holding up with all this?" Quentin asked.

"Okay. Samantha and I insisted on keeping him home from school but he insisted on going", Oliver said.

"Like his father, huh?" Quentin commented.

"I wasn't much of a student", Oliver scoffed.

"I mean he's tough", Quentin said with a proud smile as he and Rene walked out.

* * *

Later- Oliver and Quentin walked into a building, followed by some businessmen and a bunch of reporters.

"This building has been vacant since being claimed by the city under eminent domain 4 years ago", Oliver told them.

"Do you have any comments about the FBI investigating you under murder charges?" a female reported asked.

"We're not going to talk about that", Oliver said firmly.

"Except to say it's a load of crap", Quentin added.

"Ahem", Oliver said, "By offering subsidized leasing to Markovia's Vortex Industries, they're gonna be able to create a high-tech factory here, bringing at the very least 800 new jobs to Star City."

"Can you shed light on the accusation of being the Green Arrow?" a male reporter asked.

"You said you are not the Green Arrow", the female reporter said, "Well then who is?"

"Enough!" Oliver said firmly, "If we're not here to discuss the Markovian initiative, then please get back on the bus, because I will not- for the last time- be answering questions on the Green Arrow."

"But I'd be happy to", one businessman said as he introduced himself, "Alec Tarkov. I'm the vortex CEO. And if your Mayor is truly a CEO, which seems ludicrous- Thank you. We will double our investment. Safe city's a good place to do business, no?"

"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, Mr. Tarkov", Oliver said with a smirk, "But even I don't consider myself much of a superhero."

At that moment, gunshots were fired on them and they all reflexively ducked to avoid them.

"GO! GO! GO!" Oliver said to the others, gesturing to the van.

His bodyguards were gunned down before they could use their own weapons.

Oliver and Quentin managed to get the businessmen and the reporters into the back of the van. Quentin then sat on the driver's seat with Oliver next to him.

Quentin started the van as some gunmen appeared in the front. Quentin hit them with the van, knocking them down as he drove out of the building at full speed.

"HOLD ON! HOLD ON!" he said to everyone on the back. But three gunmen appeared in the front and fired at the window, causing Quentin to lose his grip, skidding the van to a stop.

"Is everyone all right?" Oliver asked everyone on the backseat who managed to nod.

Oliver then felt someone moving towards the van on his side. He quickly opened the door- to see a man standing there, a disturbing smirk on his face.

He sported 2 tattoos of dragons around his neck. Oliver's eyes flashed in recognition on seeing them.

"Hello, Mr. Mayor", he said pleasantly to Oliver, "Hope you're having a pleasant day."

Looking at Oliver's expression, he said, "You look like you want to beat the hell out of me. Don't worry, we're not here for you. We have business with our old Markovian friends."

"But these are legitimate businessmen", Oliver protested.

"I never said my business was illegitimate", the man said before adding with a smirk, "Unless you know something a Mayor should not know."

"Take them", he said to his men who took the Markovian businessmen. Oliver wanted to stop them with every fiber of his being, but he couldn't do it without exposing himself. And considering the report on the news and Agent Watson, that would be a terrible idea.

"We'll be in touch", the man said with his arrogant smirk as he walked away with his men and the businessmen, leaving Oliver, Quentin and the businessmen. Oliver stared after him, shaking with rage.

* * *

Later, Oliver and Quentin entered the former's office where John and Dinah were talking.

"Hey", Dinah said as she got up, "We came as soon as we heard."

"We need to know why this man took the Markovians", Oliver growled, "And we need to find him now."

"Oliver, Felicity and Curtis are on this", John said, "But you need to stay down."

"I think I know something about that man", Oliver said to their shock.

"What?" Quentin asked, "How?"

"The dragon tattoos on his neck", Oliver said, "I have seen those before."

"Where?" John asked.

"When I was with the Bratva in Russia", Oliver said, "Anatoli told me there was some new player in town who was dealing with Kovar under the table because he knew the Bratva was too honorable to deal with the likes of him. The packages containing his drugs had that symbol on them. He left after I killed Kovar."

"You have any name?" Dinah asked.

"No", Oliver said, "But he did have an alias- The Dragon."

"The Dragon", Quentin said in an amused tone before saying seriously, "Maybe because of Russia, he somehow knows you are the Green Arrow. I mean, I know I said it is Chase but the way that guy was talking, it's like he was behind the photo."

"The way he was talking", Oliver said, "It was like he was taunting me that he knew who I was. Maybe he knows and he did this to tie my hands."

"We're on this", John assured him, "We'll take care of this."

He then walked away with Quentin and Dinah, leaving behind a frustrated Oliver.

* * *

Later, Oliver and Quentin were bombarded by calls from the Markovian consulate though they managed to deflect them for some time.

"The Markovian consulate is losing their minds", Oliver fumed.

"It's the same with the Vortex home office", Quentin said, "They want to send private security to get their people back. I told them we've got it handled but-"

"It felt like you were lying?" Oliver asked and Quentin nodded.

"Where are we with the SCPD?" Oliver then asked to which Quentin said, "Dinah's got people rounding up every thug with a record, but you know, they're short-handed down there."

Before Oliver could respond, Rene arrived saying, "Got a new problem."

He then turned on the TV and the reporter said, "We received an anonymous message from the group claiming responsibility for todays' abduction of the contingent of executives from Markovia. In what can only be called a small consolation, the Mayor and the reporters at the delegation were not-"

"Lady's getting a lot of anonymous messages these days", Rene commented.

"As for what this group exactly wants, they said they will execute the hostages in 12 hours unless the city pays them a ransom of $20 million. Mayor Queen could not be reached for comment."

"Rene", Oliver said, making him switch it off, "My comment is that we don't negotiate with terrorists."

"Yeah, but if we did, we got $20 million from the inauguration of the new police department facility", Rene revealed.

"It's funny", Quentin said, "That's the exact number this Dragon guy chose."

"I don't care what number he chose", Oliver said, "We're not paying him 20 cents."

At that moment, his cell phone vibrated and he picked it up.

"Yes", he said, "This is he."

What the person on the other side said made him pale.

"Is he okay?" he asked, making Quentin and Rene look at him, "No. Of course, of course."

He hung up and said to Quentin and Rene, "I have to go."

* * *

Later, Oliver was in the limo with Samantha and William which was driving them to Samantha's house.

"Want to tell us what happened?" Oliver asked gently.

"They know you're the Green Arrow", William said, clinging to his backpack, "They said you're not here to help me."

Samantha gripped her son's shoulder in support as Oliver said sincerely, "Oh, man. William, I am really sorry."

"They were really big eight graders", William added.

"Eight graders, huh?" Oliver mused, "You should go for the nose."

"Oliver!" Samantha stared at him, eyes wide, as William blinked, interested in what Oliver had to say.

"What?" Oliver shrugged, "If something like this happens again, go for the nose. Find the biggest one in the group, walk right up to him without saying a thing, and punch him in the nose as hard as you possible can. He will have no idea what is going on. He won't be able to see, and if he can't see, he can't fight, and then all of his buddies, all the guys that were being so brave, they will back off. Trust me on that one."

"Oh, Oliver", Samantha scolded as she rolled her eyes, "You are such a freak."

Oliver's phone then vibrated and he picked up, "Yeah?"

"It's me", Felicity said, "Hang on a second."

Oliver winced and held the phone away as he heard static, "What was that?"

"Had to secure the line", she said, "Curtis and I found the Dragon."

"Russian restaurant owned by a dummy corporation", Curtis took over, "Thermal satellite reads 4 bodies in an industrial cooler."

"Is it the hostages?" Oliver asked.

"That's what we're thinking", Felicity replied.

"Text me the address", Oliver ordered, "I'll be there soon."

He looked at Samantha and William and said, "I'm sorry but I have to go."

When Samantha nodded, he said, "Stop the car, please."

As the car was stopped, William asked, "Dad?"

"Listen", Oliver said as he kneeled down, "Go home with your mother. I promise that we'll talk right about this when I get home, but for now, I got to go. Please, trust me."

William nodded and Oliver walked out of the car, leaving Samantha and William behind.

* * *

"3 access points", Spartan said, "North, south and east."

"Lance said these guys are packing some heavy artillery", Canary said as she walked up to him.

"Where's GA?" Mister Terrific asked.

"Swinging here like a badass", Black Siren commented as everyone rolled their eyes.

"I am here!"

The three turned to see Green Arrow standing there.

"I thought that bitchy agent wouldn't let you get around anywhere", Black Siren commented.

"It wasn't easy", Green Arrow said before ordering, "Terrific, keep eyes on the perimeter. Spartan, Black Siren, Canary, occupy the guards. I'll extract the Markovians."

He then fired a line and swung down, crashing through the window. As a guard turned towards him, he rolled towards him, grabbed him and slammed him to the ground.

As he moved further in, another guard attacked him but he blocked, smacked him with the bow on his chest and slammed his head on the table.

As another attacked, he blocked, slammed his head on the table and threw him away. He then heard footsteps and turned to see 2 more approaching.

He blocked the first's attack and slammed him on the table. The other tried to hit him with a hammer but he blocked with the bow before hitting him on the elbow, disarming him. He then kicked him away. The previous one got up to attack again but he grabbed his head, slid it on the table and threw him off before kicking the hammer guy away.

One more attacked but he blocked, smacked him on the chest with the bow and threw him over the table, before moving further in.

Outside, Black Siren and Canary used their Canary cries in perfect sync, throwing away a bunch of guards and immobilizing them.

Green Arrow slammed a guard on a lit stove, putting him on fire. He then kicked him away. Canary hit a guard on the legs with her bo-staff, putting him down. Another rushed her but Black Siren tripped him with her foot and then kicked him on the head, knocking him out.

A guard attacked Spartan but he shot him down. He kicked away another sneaking up on him and shot down another in front of him. A last guard tried to sneak up on him but Black Siren sent him flying off with a Canary Cry.

A guard tried to leap at Green Arrow with a knife but he kicked him on the chest and he was out. Another attacked but he grabbed him by the collar, slammed him on the wall and then threw him away. He then took out an explosive arrow and fired at a door, blowing it into pieces.

The Markovian businessmen walked out of the room. Green Arrow was shocked though.

"There were 4 of you", he said to them, counting only 3 right now.

"Alex Tarkov", one of them said, "Our CEO. They took him."

"Where?"

"They did not tell us."

"Spartan, Black Siren, Canary, we are short one hostage", Green Arrow told them.

"We just did a sweep", Canary said, "There is no one else here."

"Overwatch!" Green Arrow asked.

"I don't know what happened", she said, "Thermal read 4 bodies inside. They must have moved one."

* * *

"In the least surprising news ever", Felicity said to the others, "The restaurant that used to be run by the Bratva is lacking in security cams."

"So you mean mobsters like their privacy?" Dinah asked sarcastically.

"Maybe Russian mobsters did", Laurel said.

"So what now?" Oliver asked.

"So now I show you security camera footage from outside the restaurant", Felicity said and showed them the footage. They saw the man with the dragon tattoos leaving with Tarkov.

"Where's the Dragon taking Tarkov?" John said.

"Well, from this feed, it looks like he's headed north-east, but we lose him right about here", Felicity said, pointing at the direction.

"We can still find him though, right?" Curtis said.

"Oh, totally", Felicity said.

"John, Laurel, Dinah", Oliver said, "Prepare to hit whatever location Felicity and Curtis come up with."

He then walked out, leaving them to do the work.

* * *

Oliver walked up to William and said, "I'm sorry buddy, I ran out on you both. But I know you needed help with this so do you want to learn a few more moves or-"

"I don't want to learn how to fight", William protested.

"I don't want to teach you to fight", Oliver said, "But sometimes, bullies can't be reasoned with."

"Well, you can just stay away from them", Samantha said.

"Sometimes, they don't want to stay away from you", Oliver said.

"Why did you leave us like that?" William asked.

"I am sorry, William", Oliver said.

"I didn't know if you were gonna come back", William said emotionally.

"William, look at me", Oliver said as he put his hands on his son's shoulders, making him look at him, "I will always come back."

"Will you really?" William asked, "There's a million psychos out there, trying to kill you, like the one that kidnapped me and mom."

"I-I can handle them", Oliver said.

"What if you can't?" William asked, "I just started getting to know my dad. And then I'll lose you."

"I swear to God I will never let that happen to you", Oliver promised.

"It's not up to you", William pointed out.

Oliver's cell phone then vibrated and he said, "Sorry. I got work."

"Which work?" William asked as Oliver walked out.

"William!" Samantha scolded him.

Oliver accepted the video call and his blood boiled on seeing the Dragon on the other end.

"Hello, Oliver", he said smugly.

"Why are you doing this, huh?" Oliver asked angrily, "What do you want?"

"I just want some more money than I already have", the Dragon said, "And from what I've heard, this city has recently come into position of $20 million."

"There are plenty of other cities", Oliver said.

"Yes, there are", the Dragon said, "But this is the one I want. And to get it, I must remove all the obstacles. The biggest of them being you. But I know, people like you always need persuasion."

He then shifted the phone, focusing it on Tarkov who was also there. Only, there were unhealthy, decaying scales on his face.

"The muscles of this nice man have been paralyzed", the Dragon said calmly, making Oliver's blood boil, "That'll be followed by lung collapse and he won't be able to breathe. This happens in maybe 3 hours. I have a cure for his condition. Do you have the cure for mine?"

"Who are you?" Oliver asked in a threatening tone.

"My name is- Diaz", the Dragon said smugly with a smirk, "Ricardo Diaz."

And then the video call ended.

* * *

Later, Oliver was working in his office, frustrated by the demands of this Ricardo Diaz and enraged by the fact that Watson wanted to interrogate his son which Rene had informed him.

At that moment, the door opened and Roy walked in.

As Roy took his seat, Oliver asked, "What're you doing here?"

"Thea told me about what happened with William at school". Roy said, "You know, kids are mean."

"It's not bullies he's worried about", Oliver said, "He's worried about me. He thinks I may not come back one day."

"Oh boy!" Roy said.

"I told him that I'd always come back", Oliver said, "I've never lied to my kid before."

"You know, this is coming from the guy who sent his kid's mother to prison while she was pregnant", Roy said while Oliver sensed some minor guilt in his voice over that, "But me and Thea, we're trying our best to be there for her. Everything we can do, we're doing it. Because we love her, and she should know that."

"What's the point you're trying to make?" Oliver asked.

"No one knows whether you will return from the field or not", Roy said, "But you need to be there for your kid while you are around. He should know you love him."

Oliver nodded, grateful to Roy for the advice. His cell phone then vibrated and he looked at it. Looking at Roy, he said, "We have Diaz's location."

"All right", Roy said, "Good luck."

Oliver nodded in thanks and went out from the back entrance.

* * *

Green Arrow and Spartan looked over at the shipyard as they stood atop a container. Spartan gave Green Arrow the cure for Tarkov's condition, which had been developed by Dr. Schwartz. The two then stood, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Wild Dog and Mister Terrific were walking around, discussing how to alert the others about their position if they were in a fight. At that moment, they saw a bunch of men standing, aiming their guns on them.

"Heads up!" Mister Terrific said as the two ran to avoid the shots.

Spartan shot down a guard. Five others turned to fire at him but Black Siren arrived and hit them with a Canary Cry, knocking them all down. One of them tried to get up but Canary arrived and hit his head with her bo-staff, knocking him out.

A man suddenly arrived behind Canary and tried to choke her with a rope. Before Spartan could do a thing, Black Siren kicked him on the side of the knee and then gave him a kick in a rotatory motion on the side of the head, freeing Canary. Canary then turned and screamed at him, knocking him out. She gave Black Siren a nod of appreciation.

Green Arrow kicked away a man rushing him. Another attacked him from the side but he flipped him over his shoulder. Another arrived to kick him but he blocked and swept his feet from under him. Another tried to spin kick him but he grabbed his foot and flipped him to the ground. Another tried to attack him with a knife but he kicked him away and then flipped another over his shoulder.

Mister Terrific threw his T-Spheres, knocking down some men while Wild Dog fired at them.

Green Arrow threw down a man before blocking another's strike and throwing him away too. He then punched a man out. Another attacked him but he avoided and smacked him with his bow, knocking him out. Another thug attacked him but he kneed him on the chest and he was down. Another one tried to attack too but Green Arrow blocked, smacked his elbow with his bow and then kneed him on the chest, putting him down. He then fired an arrow at the last one, putting him down.

He then moved further in and saw Tarkov tied up, Diaz standing next to him.

"I asked specifically for $20 million because I knew you had them", Diaz said, "Are you seriously trading this man's life for the new police station?"

"Not exactly", Green Arrow said and fired an arrow on Tarkov's shoulder.

"I don't think you understand how this rescue thing works", Diaz said.

"I actually do", Green Arrow said and Diaz watched as the scales on Tarkov started disappearing.

"A cure, huh?" Diaz said, "Clever."

"Now step away from him, Diaz", Green Arrow said, "He's not part of this."

"I made him part of this", Diaz said and at that moment, there was a gunshot. The bullet hit Tarkov on the heart, killing him.

"And I never got my money", Diaz said.

"I'm going to kill you?" Green Arrow said as he aimed an arrow at him.

"Really, Mr. Queen?"

Green Arrow's widened in shock as he realized his guess was right, "You leaked my photo. You did all this. Why? And how do you know who I am?"

"Let's just say I made a friend", Diaz said, "He will take you down so I can take this city."

Diaz then suddenly threw a flashbbang grenade on the ground and disappeared.

* * *

That evening, Roy and Laurel were called into Agent Watson's office for interrogation.

"You're the Arrow. You live with Oliver Queen' sister so you know him", Watson said to Roy who sat across the table from her, "So don't you think he became the Green Arrow to honor you? And Laurel, you were the Black Canary. Was he the Green Arrow?"

"No, he wasn't", Laurel said, "The Green Arrow never told me who he actually was."

"I have no idea", Roy said to answer Watson's question, "But if he is, then I am proud of him for that. He saved this city from Damien Darhk and he helped to stop an alien Invasion last year. I'm in shock that the President has asked you to investigate him."

Samantha's professional expression turned to one of shock for a moment which Roy and Laurel noticed.

"Unless you're doing this behind her back", Laurel said with her old evil smirk, unnerving her, "This is some vendetta, isn't it?"

Before Watson could respond, Oliver walked in and said, "Sorry, I'm late."

"About time", Watson said, "Though I think your son was supposed to be here-"

"Let me stop you right there", Oliver said firmly, "Roy, Laurel, a minute please?"

As Roy and Laurel walked out, Watson said, "Can you contact your former temporary DA? Matthew Murdock? He seems like a suspicious person to me. He shows up. The Devil shows up. He leaves. The Devil disappears. I think he might know something."

"Do you hear yourself, Agent Watson?" Oliver asked incredulously, "You are implying that a blind man is a vigilante. Seriously?"

"What if he was faking-"

"And regardless of who you think I am, I won't let you involve my 11-year old son in this. He's been through a lot", Oliver said, "For the past few months, I have been trying to be a good father to him. To be there for him even as I walk between 2 worlds. As Mayor. As father."

"Touching speech", Watson commented, "But you do realize that telling the FBI how to conduct an investigation is obstruction of justice, right?"

"You are accusing me of breaking the law even though you're trying to investigate someone the President pardoned for vigilantism behind her back", Oliver said angrily and Watson paled.

"I called her to ask why an FBI agent is in Star City to arrest the Green Arrow", Oliver said, "She would like to speak to you."

He called her and said, "Mrs. President. I'm here with Agent Watson."

He put the phone on speaker as the President told Watson, "Agent Samanda Watson, you are hereby relieved of your badge for trying to conduct an investigation of one of the country's greatest heroes behind my back. Be grateful that the removal of your position is the only punishment I have for you."

Watson could only glare at Oliver as he smirked victoriously.

* * *

Sometime after Felicity and Curtis had anonymously given evidence to the media that the photo of Oliver as the Green Arrow was doctored, Oliver walked up to William who was playing a video game and said, "I would like to apologize."

"For what?" William asked as he paused the game.

"For making a promise I couldn't keep", Oliver said, "You were right and I was wrong."

"And?" William asked.

"I can't promise anything like that now", Oliver said, "But I promise you that I will be there for you as much as I can and I will be the father you need me to be. I love you, son."

Hearing that, William hugged Oliver tightly and said emotionally, "I love you too, dad."

Oliver's phone suddenly vibrated and he said to William, "I have to take this."

As William let him go, Oliver picked up the call and greeted the caller, "Lyla."

"Oliver", she said from the other side.

"What happened?" he asked, "Why're you calling me?"

"Why do you ask?" she asked cheekily.

"Because I know that whenever you call me, something bad has happened", Oliver said cheekily.

"It's not bad, Oliver", Lyla said, adopting a serious tone, "It's horrible."

"What is it?" Oliver asked, having a bad feeling about this.

"Adrian Chase", Lyla said, "He was broken out of Lian Yu."

Oliver's eyes widened in shock and he paled.

* * *

Central City

Cisco Ramon opened the door to his house and walked inside. It was dark. He switched the lights on. He then put down his bag and decided to cook something for himself.

As he moved towards the kitchen, a dart hit him on the neck and he fell down, his vision blurring. Before he was out, he saw a masked man with a bow and arrows looking down on him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked this.
> 
> There. A sensible way to end the FBI drama.
> 
> Next chapter will feature Earth-199999. Like I said, this is a slow burn so bear with me till then.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	3. Entry into a new world

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chase forces Cisco to give him what he wants while Oliver goes on a mission with someone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Cisco's eyes opened. He could feel the cold, hard floor pressing against his cheek. He wondered where he was. Then he felt something on his wrists. Cuffs! Power-dampening cuffs!

"So you're awake, Mr. Ramon", said a distorted voice from a corner. Cisco's vision cleared a little and he turned his head to the direction from which the voice was coming. He could see a pair of feet. As he turned his head a little up, he saw who it was.

A man wearing a suit which was exactly like the Green Arrow's. The difference was that this suit was black and his mask covered his entire face. Cisco knew who this was.

"Prometheus!" he said to him, "You are Adrian Chase, aren't you?"

Prometheus took off his mask and hood, revealing the face of Adrian Chase underneath.

"Yes, I am Adrian Chase", Adrian said as he moved threateningly towards Cisco, "And I am here because I want you to do something for me."

"Whatever it is, I won't do it", Cisco said bravely.

"I know you won't", Chase said, "But you don't have your powers. I will kill you if you don't do it."

"Well then do it", Cisco said, "Whatever it is you want me to do, I won't do it, Dark One!"

"Brave and loyal. I admire that", Chase said in a whisper, "But remember, I'm always ten steps ahead."

As he said that, he took out a tablet and showed it to Cisco. It was showing live feed of a house. Cisco's eyes widened in shock on seeing which house it was.

It was his parents' house.

"My men are outside", Chase said, "If you don't do what I want you to do, then they will kill your parents."

"Well then, what do you want?" Cisco said, giving in due to the fact that his parents were threatened.

"You're a genius when it comes to tech", Adrian said as he circled Cisco, like a cat waiting to pounce, "There is one specific piece of technology designed by you that I'm interested in. The interdimensional extrapolator."

"What do you want with that?" Cisco asked.

"I want to make someone wish he were dead", Adrian said angrily in a whisper.

"To which Earth?" Cisco asked, fear for his family's life making him shake.

"Whichever Earth Matt Murdock is from", Chase said and Cisco's jaw dropped, "Do it right now or they die!"

Cisco knew that if he did this, Matt would be in trouble. If he didn't do it, his parents would die. The best case scenario was to do it and then tell Oliver. But what if Chase killed him after he had done it? But out of the two, making the device seemed like the better option.

Cisco then used the equipment kept in the warehouse and toiled for a few hours which felt like weeks. He did his best to not falter as he feared for his family. Finally, it was ready.

Turning to Chase, he held it up and said, "Here. Take it."

Chase took it and looked at it with keen eyes.

Looking at Cisco, he said, "Thank you for your services, Mr. Ramon."

He then brandished his katana and said, "You will never be forgotten."

"I did what you asked me to do!" Cisco said in fear as he backed up, "Let me go!"

"I said I would let your parents go", Chase pointed out, "I never said anything about you."

At that moment, Cisco realized that Chase had taken his phone but not his watch. Being the genius he was, Cisco had put a panic feature in that too.

Before Chase could do a thing, Cisco pressed the button.

As Chase moved towards him, a yellow blur threw him away. As Chase rolled on the ground, Kid Flash vibrated his hands on Cisco's cuffs, breaking them.

"He has men outside my parents' house", Cisco said to him in panic, "Go!"

Kid Flash sped off as Chase got up again. Now with his hands free, Cisco fired a vibe blast which hit Chase, on the chest sending him to the ground again. As he fired another, Chase rolled away, avoiding it. He then threw a shuriken which hit Cisco on the knee, making him stagger and fall.

"Aim better next time, Mr. Ramon", Chase said as he pressed the button and a portal opened. He then went into it and it closed. Cisco could only watch in horror as he mentally apologized to Matt for whatever Chase was going to do to him.

* * *

Star City, Next night

Oliver and the team had stopped Onyx and Oliver was back in his house to relax, even though Chase was still in his mind. At that moment, he got a phone call. After hearing the person on the other end, he realized he was going on another adventure.

* * *

Hell's Kitchen, Earth-199999

Wilson Fisk sat alone in his cell, brooding. He knew that when the time was right, he would get out and have his revenge on everyone- including Daredevil and Matt Murdock.

Suddenly, the lights flickered and in front of him stood an archer in a black suit. He had a mask to cover his face. A sword was on his back.

"Who are you?" asked Fisk.

"Mr. Fisk", said the archer, "I have a proposal for you."

"What kind of proposal?" Fisk asked him.

"I know you want vengeance on Matt Murdock and Daredevil", the archer said, "I can help you with that. I can also get you out of here."

"You don't need to get me out of here", Fisk said, "I have already arranged that. But tell me- who are you and why do you want to hurt them?"

As Prometheus turned away from Fisk, he said, "I am Prometheus. And I am doing this because they took everything from me."

"What will I get by siding with you?" Fisk asked.

"I know something about them no one else knows", Prometheus said, "And I am going to tell you."

"What?" Fisk asked in anticipation for what was coming. Prometheus took a deep breath, to make the moment more intense before he decided to speak.

"Matt Murdock and Daredevil are the same", Prometheus said.

Fisk's eyes widened in shock but he regained composure as he realized it made some sense, even though Matt was blind.

"When you get out, we will work together and I will help you in making him wish he were dead", Prometheus said.

"You don't know how much this means to me", Fisk said sincerely, "Thank you for telling me. I will definitely work with you. Now I am going to make Matt Murdock's life a living hell. The Devil he calls himself. Well he can bring it on! He'll never see me coming."

"How will you get out?" Prometheus asked.

"I have a plan. I just need to execute it right", Fisk said.

"Okay", Prometheus said, "Sounds interesting to me. I can do some things myself to him."

"Are you going to do what I think you're going to do?" Fisk asked.

"Yes."

The lights flickered again and Prometheus was gone.

* * *

Star City, Earth-1

Slade Wilson stood outside a black SUV with the trunk open, a duffle bag over his shoulder. He checked his watch and sighed in disappointment, thinking that the kid won't come.

He put the bag inside and closed the trunk, preparing to leave.

"How long is the flight?"

Slade turned around to see Oliver standing there.

"About 12 hours", Slade said, almost grinning, "Thanks for coming, kid."

"Let's go get your boy", Oliver said as he moved towards the SUV.

Before he could move inside, his cell phone vibrated. He picked up and what the person on the other end said made him pale, which Slade noticed.

As he put the phone back down, Slade asked him, "Who was that?"

"It was Cisco Ramon from STAR Labs", Oliver said.

"What did he say?" Slade asked.

"He says Adrian Chase kidnapped him and forced him to build an interdimensional extrapolator to Matt's Earth", Oliver revealed, shocking Slade.

"Adrian blames Matt for his plan's failure", Slade said in realization, "So now he wants to make him suffer."

Oliver was in a dilemma now. Matt was one of his best friends but Slade had been like a brother too. And they both had helped in saving William. He kept thinking but he finally decided to go with Slade. His reasoning being that Chase would take some time to find Matt and his weaknesses.

"I'm coming with you Slade", Oliver said, "And then I will go help Matt."

"Thank you kid", Slade said sincerely, "After this, I hope you help him."

What Oliver did not know right now was that he would regret this decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know. A lot happened quickly but I needed to get it moving.
> 
> The Slade arc will remain the same but now I will also show Fisk and Chase's plans on Earth-199999. Oliver's decision will definitely come back to bite him in the ass.
> 
> Some plot points from 'Born Again' will make their way into the story next chapter.
> 
> Flash 4x1 hasn't happened yet which is why no Barry.
> 
> I am obviously not doing 6x4 as Helix was never a part of the first story and after 6x6, I am not following Season 6 at all.
> 
> The literal meaning of the word 'Adrian' is 'Dark One.'
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	4. Fast and on-point

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver and Slade go to Kasnia to find the latter's son while Adrian makes his move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Hell's Kitchen, Earth-199999

Matt woke up in his apartment. Because he was blind, he missed the prettiest morning of the year. All he got were hissing pipes and an east coast chill that went straight for the bones.

He got out of bed and put on a robe to cover his nudity.

He had heard the mail slip through the mail chute and hit the floor. He picked them up and read the envelopes with his fingers.

What he read made his blood run cold. There was a letter from his bank saying they hadn't received his previous two mortgage payments and then there was a letter from the  **Internal Revenue Service**  that his tax files were being audited and that every penny he had was frozen until the audit was complete.

So now all his accounts were frozen by the IRS and the bank was foreclosing on his apartment. How the hell did that suddenly happen?

"All of this before coffee", he grumbled, "This is all really bullshit!"

* * *

From a distance, Chase watched him with binoculars. At this distance, he could not hear anything Murdock was saying. But he was well-versed in lip reading.

Chase walked away from there and said, "Don't worry, Mr. Murdock. There is more bullshit coming your way for all the bullshit you threw at me."

* * *

Kasnia, Earth-1

"So where's your point of contact?" Oliver asked Slade as the two stood in an area.

"I don't know", Slade said, "Foreign associate of mine from back in the service days. He's a bit of a jackass and never on time."

"He's not that bad."

The two turned to see a man with long hair walk up to them.

"Ha, ha", he said to Slade, "Slade Wilson. The Terminator."

The two hugged as Slade said, "I haven't heard that name in a while."

As they broke apart, Slade said, "See you're running later than usual."

"I was with a girl", Nylander said smugly, "Forget about it. Look at you. The Mirakuru did you wonders, huh?"

Noticing Slade's expression, he said, "Oh, what? You're not sensitive about that skit, are you? You were quite the madman, I hear."

"You promised me something", Slade said, already annoyed by Nylander's comments, "Did you bring it, or did I waste my time travelling 7000 miles for you to screw with me?"

Nylander reached into his bag and took out a file. Handing it to Slade, he said, "Truth be told. I'm glad you got your marbles back."

He then patted Slade on the shoulder and looking at Oliver asked, "So who's this?"

"He's a friend of mine", Slade said, "Don't worry about him."

"With you, I always worry", Nylander quipped.

"This should work. Thank you", Slade said sincerely.

"That's it? Just "thank you?"" Nylander asked, feeling a little disappointed, "No extravagant dinner, no pints?"

"Maybe next time, when my son isn't rotting in a third-world prison", Slade said as he walked away.

"He's lucky to have you as a father", Nylander said to him.

"My son wouldn't be in this mess if anybody else was his father", Slade said with a lot of self-loathing. Oliver noticed that and felt sad for his friend.

"Just be careful, Kamrat", Nylander warned, "Your boy was snooping around some private-op mercenaries, um, not so nice guys."

"Under certain circumstances, I'm not so nice a guy", Slade said to him before walking off. Oliver looked at Nylander one last time, feeling there was something off about him, but then he walked off too.

* * *

New York, Earth-199999

Fisk was in his cell. He had put forth the offer to the FBI through his lawyer. The lights flickered and Prometheus stood there.

"How the hell do you break into places like this?" Fisk asked.

"A magician never reveals his tricks, Mr. Fisk", Prometheus said, "I have already started making Matt Murdock suffer."

"What did you do?" Fisk asked.

"I managed to track down your resources", Prometheus said and Fisk looked shocked, "And then, I used the IRS to freeze his accounts while the bank forecloses on his apartment."

"Brilliant!" Fisk said, impressed by how this man worked, "How did you track down my resources though?"

"I managed to be District Attorney of a city for almost a year without any law degree", Prometheus said smugly, "I can do a lot. And I think your plan has already begun, hasn't it, Mr. Fisk?"

"It has", Fisk said, "I will eliminate all my competition and I will get what I want."

"I hope you do, Mr. Fisk", Prometheus said, "This is a golden opportunity for both of us. You want this city, I want to make Matt Murdock suffer. The one thing common in both of our goals is Matt Murdock. He is a thorn on your side while he is the goal of mine."

"Why do you want to make him suffer?" Fisk asked again.

"He took everything from me", Prometheus said, "My revenge. That's what he took from me. I was so close. And he destroyed it all."

"I am truly sorry for what happened to you", Fisk said sympathetically, "Do not worry. Your loss will be avenged and so will mine."

"It will be, Mr. Fisk", Prometheus said as he turned away, "We will do that, together. I am going to give him Hell."

The lights flickered and Prometheus disappeared again.

* * *

Kasnia, Earth-1

"I call this play Liberty Watch", Slade said as he handed Oliver a pamphlet, "Famous American Mayor comes to war-torn Kasnia to free a man who has been wrongfully accused."

"Clever", Oliver commented.

"Like I said, a diplomatic solution", Slade said.

"Well, Slade, I still don't think they are gonna free your son just because I give them a photo op", Oliver pointed out.

"Well, the photo op is just for entry. Of course they'll need a reason to release him", Slade said as he opened a lid of a briefcase, "And here are 50,000."

"Assuming this works", Oliver said, "Where do we meet?"

"When you pick up Joe, go straight to the airport", Slade said as he handed Oliver 2 tickets and a passport, "Here is an alias passport for him and tickets for you both to London."

"You're not even gonna see him?" Oliver asked incredulously.

"I need you to promise me that you won't tell him I helped", Slade said and Oliver was even more shocked.

"I'm not gonna lie to your son", Oliver said.

"It's better this way", Slade said.

"For him or for you?" Oliver asked, to which Slade had no answer, "Wait! Are you- are you afraid that he's gonna see you as Deathstroke and not as the man you were? The-the man I think you are now?"

"I gave up the right to be his father when I stepped out from the light into the shadows and became this monster", Slade said with regret.

"Your son will forgive you, Slade", Oliver assured him, "He's your family. All you have to do is be there for him."

"Joe knew that I was coming to look for him, so he contacted his mother", Slade revealed, "And she gave me a message, telling me to stay away."

Looking at Oliver, he said sincerely with some regret, "You got your second chance kid, and I'm happy for you."

He then finally said in a grim tone, "Some fathers aren't that lucky."

* * *

In the afternoon, Oliver walked into the Warden's office who greeted him, "Mr. Queen."

"Thank you for taking the time", Oliver said to him.

"It's not every day I meet celebrity", the Warden said with a laugh.

"I'm not famous", Oliver said.

"I saw you on news once", the Warden said, "You punched man with camera."

"Heh. Yeah", Oliver said, "I sure did."

"They also say you're good with bow and arrow", the Warden said, causing Oliver to say, "Don't believe everything that you see on TV."

"Okay, okay", the Warden said as he took his seat, "I understand you're with organization in hopes-"

"To request the release of one of your prisoners", Oliver said, "Kane Wolfman."

The Warden's expression turned grim and he said, "I wish you'd come earlier."

* * *

The door to the hotel room opened and Oliver walked inside.

Slade was shocked to see him and asked, "What're you doing back here? Where is my son?"

"Uh, there-there was a fight in the prison yard that Joe tried to….. break up", Oliver said with a very sad sigh, "Someone pushed and he hit his head hard. He's gone."

Slade's entire face shook with emotion while Oliver could only watch in sadness.

Slade then sat on one of the beds as Oliver sat on another, looking at him. Slade looked at a picture of him and his son when they had gone on the trip to Milford Sound. He had just been a teenager. Slade's hands shook with emotion.

They sat like that for at least half an hour.

"He never knew", Slade said finally, breaking the silence.

"Never knew what?" Oliver asked.

"That I loved him", Slade said brokenly.

"I'm sure that he did, Slade", Oliver assured him.

"I don't remember the last time I told him", Slade said as he held back his tears.

"Well, you were his father. He knew", Oliver assured again.

"I should have come with you to the prison", Slade said as he got to his feet, "I know it wouldn't have made any difference, but at least I could have seen him, said goodbye."

"We still can", Oliver assured as he got to his feet, "You can still say goodbye."

* * *

"Mr. Queen", the Warden said as he saw Oliver walk back in with Slade, "I was not expecting a return visit."

"Uh, Warden, this is Kane Wolfman's father", Oliver said as he gestured to Slade, "He wishes to see his son's body."

"I am afraid that won't be possible", the Warden said, very nervously.

"Why?" Oliver asked as Slade remained silent, "You said he passed away only days ago."

"Yes, but-"

"Warden!" Oliver snapped as he suspected some foul play, "Where's the body?"

"It is no longer in my possession", the Warden tried to explain.

"Then where is my son's body?" Slade growled as he took several threatening steps towards the Warden.

"Hey, hey", Oliver said as he put his hand on Slade's shoulder to calm him down, "Easy, easy."

To Oliver's surprise, Slade stepped back and looking at Oliver said, "He's lying."

"Do you want me to contact Liberty watch? Do you want me to cause an international incident? Because I am prepared to do both", Oliver threatened, with every intention of following through if the Warden did not tell him the truth.

"The situation is complicated", the Warden tried to explain again.

"Then uncomplicated it!" Slade said angrily as he took threatening steps towards the Warden again but Oliver pushed him back, "Hey."

As Slade stopped, Oliver turned to the Warden and said, "Trust me on this one. You do not want to make this man angry."

With a sigh, the Warden gave in, "They are called the Jackals; the men your son investigated. When they discovered his arrest, which was merely him being in wrong place at wrong time, they broke into prison, take him."

"Why did they take him?" Slade asked.

"Torture", the Warden revealed, "Your son is spy. In his head, secrets worth millions. They threatened reprisal on my family if I spoke about it."

Slade walked away angrily as Oliver tried to call out worriedly, "Slade! Slade!"

"When the Jackals took my son, they didn't count on who his father was", Slade said darkly as he walked out of the room.

Oliver looked at the Warden one last time and followed Slade out.

* * *

Later, Slade changed into his Deathstroke suit as Oliver walked in with a tablet in one hand and a glass of water in another, "I asked Felicity for any Intel she could find on the Jackals. She hacked the databases of every major intelligence agency in the world."

"And what did she find?" Slade asked.

"Nothing", Oliver said, "These guys are ghosts."

"Well, that's no help", Slade said in disappointment.

"But this is", Oliver said as he handed Slade the tablet.

Slade looked at the tablet. There was a video of the Jackals dragging his son out of his cell.

"Using close circuit cameras in the prison and surrounding areas, she got their escape route, the license plates", Oliver revealed, "And then using keyhole satellite technology-"

"She tracked them to one location", Slade finished, impressed.

"She did", Oliver said.

"She's brilliant", Slade commented as he moved to gather his weapons.

"What's in there for me?" Oliver asked.

"Nothing", Slade said, "I promised your only part was talking."

"Circumstances have changed", Oliver argued.

"Not for you", Slade said, "You have your son and your own problems back home. You also need to help Matt."

"Slade, these Jackals are the best of the worst, all right?" Oliver argued again, "They are stone-cold killers."

"What do you think I am?" Slade asked as he loaded his gun.

"I think that you're outnumbered, and quite frankly, I think you're out of practice", Oliver said to him bluntly, "And I'm not letting you do this alo-"

Oliver suddenly stopped and swayed on his feet as everything around him spun. He then fell to his knees, slumping against the bed, out cold.

Slade had put a sedative in his water.

"Alone is what I do best, kid", Slade said grimly.

* * *

Oliver groaned as his eyes opened. He blinked several times as the world around him came back to normal.

The first thing he saw was a letter. He picked it up and read-  _'Go help Matt, kid. Then go home and be a father. Thanks for reminding me that I'm one too.'_

Oliver put it away and picked up his bag, deciding that Slade did not want his help after all. His cell phone then vibrated and he picked up.

"Hey, buddy", Oliver said to his son on the other end.

"I just want to check in. Is this a bad time?" William asked Oliver.

"It's never a bad time", Oliver assured him.

"Are you coming home?" William asked.

"As a matter of fact, I am", Oliver said.

"Good", William said, "I wish you were here already. Mom's making me eat granola all weekend."

"Your mom knows what's best for you", Oliver said with a chuckle.

"Were you able to help your friend?" William asked curiously.

"No, I wasn't", Oliver said remorsefully.

"I really hope he finds his son", William said sincerely.

"Yeah", Oliver agreed, "I do too."

"Is there anything else you can do for him?" William asked and at that, Oliver's eyes lit up.

"As a matter of fact, I think I can", Oliver said, "I'll see you, buddy."

* * *

Two Jackals were playing cards with each other.

"War", one of them said.

At that moment, a sword protruded from the throat of the other one and he reeled in shock as the sword was pulled out while he toppled.

"Who's in charge?" Deathstroke asked him as he tried to pull out his gun. But Deathstroke was quicker and pulled out his gun, shooting him dead. His body fell in front of another Jackal who pulled out his gun but was shot dead too.

He then sliced another Jackal who arrived with his sword. Another fired at him but the bullets were deflected by his armor. He slammed the Jackal into the wall and flipping him to the ground, shot him dead.

Another arrived but Deathstroke sliced his leg and then shot him dead. Another arrived to fire but Deathstroke sliced his abdomen and then drove his sword through it. He then retracted it and he fell down, dead.

Two more arrived to fire but the bullets were deflected by his armor. They ran out of ammunition and ran away to another room. They threw away their weapons and tried to pick out other guns.

A man crashed through another pair of doors, Deathstroke running after him. One of them raised his gun but Deathstroke grabbed his arm and flipped him to the ground before shooting the other one dead.

The flipped one got up but Deathstroke sliced his abdomen and quickly snapped his neck before shooting dead another Jackal who had arrived. He then kicked another Jackal on the chest and he was thrown away, unconscious.

Another arrived and fired but the bullets were deflected again. He rushed Deathstroke, only to be impaled on his sword. Deathstroke then shot him on the side of his abdomen and he was dead too.

He then slammed another Jackal through a pair of doors and shot him dead. Another fired but he ran his sword through his shoulder while slamming him on a table. He then retracted his sword and sliced his chest, sending him down.

He then turned and sliced the abdomen of another Jackal before kicking him away. Another fired at him while standing on a table but Deathstroke sliced his feet and he was down. One remaining Jackal tried to fire at him but he grabbed his hand. He punched Deathstroke repeatedly with his other one but it had no effect. Deathstroke let him go and gave him an upwards slice with his sword, killing him too.

He then stopped as many Jackals arrived from all sides. He took off his orange and yellow mask and stood still as they all aimed their weapons at him, ready to fire.

"Stop it, stop", said a familiar voice. Slade slowly turned around as the voice said, "Damn it, Slade! You're going to ruin my new shoes. And I just bought them, brother."

Slade knew the man had stepped on blood which ruined his new shoes. But he was a little shocked by who this was.

"Nylander", he said after he had turned around fully.

"This man, is a legend", Nylander said to everyone as he gestured at Slade, "So no pulling triggers…..yet."

He then slowly reached out and lightly put his hand on Slade's sword.

"Truce", he said to Slade, "Let me explain, brother."

Slade let go as Nylander took his sword and patted his shoulder.

"I knew you'd be involved, Nylander", Slade said as he sat on a chair in the middle of them all, "But you're too stupid to run this organization. So where's the boss?"

"You know, I had really hoped that prison would be your dead end. But no, you just had to keep on coming, didn't you?" Nylander commented, "We've got a great thing going here, Slade, lots of killing, lots of money, and your son, what he knows, priceless."

"You like burning bridges", Slade sneered and Nylander laughed.

"So says the man who nearly burned down a whole city", Nylander said as he walked away from Slade.

Enraged, Slade reached for his gun, intending to kill Nylander but one of the Jackals fired at his hand. The armor protected him but he knew this was futile now.

"You're smarter than that, Kamrat", Nylander taunted.

"Where….is my son?" Slade snarled.

"Why do you ask, hmmm?" Nylander asked, "Do you wish to join him?"

* * *

Oliver walked into the base of the Jackals and looked at the carnage caused by Slade. Hearing footsteps, he looked up to see a Jackal pointing a gun at him.

Before he could fire, Oliver snatched the gun, smacked it on his face and threw him away, knocking him out. He threw away the gun and continued.

* * *

"I'm curious, Slade", Nylander said, "What was your plan? Kill us all and save your boy? Kind of reductive, no?"

"I like to keep things simple", Slade responded.

"Ah", Nylander said, "Things rarely are, brother."

"This is", Slade said, "I will join the Jackals as long as you let my boy go."

Oliver watched the entire thing from a corner.

"It's like I said, things aren't so simple. We need your son. After all, he's our boss", Nylander announced and Slade felt like the ground had shifted from under him.

His son! His little boy! The boss of the Jackals?

A man then walked out of the shadows, a sword on his back and a gun in his hand. But Slade knew that face very well. As well as his own.

"Hello father", Joe said as he stepped out of the shadows, "It's been a long time."

Slade's face betrayed a lot of emotion as he reeled in shock on seeing his son leading these mercenaries.

* * *

Hell's Kitchen, Earth-199999

Matt's day had been bad. The bank kept insisting he hadn't paid them and threatened to foreclose. He lost his temper and yelled at them, making them hang up on him.

He pulled out his checkbook and ran his fingers across the stubs he had written with a ballpoint pen. The checks had been written on time but there was no sign of them on his monthly statements. The bank had never cashed them.

Matt had given up on that for the day and gone to work, which was pretty uneventful, so his mind had remained on his financial plight.

He was now walking back home, thinking about legal options to use.

As he reached his apartment, he said to himself, 'I'm not defeated by them. Not yet.'

As he walked inside, he heard a whooshing sound. Before he could react, there was an explosion on his window and he was thrown away by several feet as some shrapnel hit him. Someone had fired a missile on his apartment. As he got up, there was another and he was thrown away again. He was badly injured by now.

As he tried to get up, this time he heard a light whoosh and something was stuck on the ground. He was shocked when he realized what had produced that sound. With shaking hands, he picked it up and his own heart skipped a beat. It was a shuriken. Made from the same material as Oliver's arrows.

"It can't be", he said in disbelief.

He jumped out of the window and landed safely on the ground, though he was still wounded and staggered. As he did, he felt something being thrown on him. He narrowly avoided it and realized it was the case in which he kept his suit.

And then he heard a voice which made him pale.

"Hello, Matthew."

Matt turned his head up slowly and said, "Adrian!"

Prometheus walked closer as he said, "How-how did you get here?"

"Not important", Prometheus said as he pulled out his sword, "But I am here now."

"What do you want from me?" Matt asked as he barely heard the sirens of the vehicles of firemen.

"You took my revenge away from me", Prometheus said, "Now I will make you suffer."

He then swung his sword but Matt ducked and then grabbed both of his hands, trying to snatch it. But he was too injured and Prometheus kicked him in the abdomen, making him stagger back. He then grabbed his face and kneed it, making him fall down.

"I am finding out everything about you", Prometheus said as he circled him, "Who you love. Who you trust. And I know a lot about who you've hurt. I'm going to make you suffer, Matthew."

Matt roared and got up to attack. He tried to throw a punch but Prometheus ducked and sliced the right side of his face, making him stagger. He then gave a left hook to that side of his face, making him stagger again. Matt managed to punch him in the abdomen and on the face, making him stagger back. Prometheus suddenly stabbed Matt's right knee, making him kneel. He then grabbed Matt by the collar and threw him away to another side of the road. He then smashed his head into a car door and then on the ground repeatedly. Matt was too weak now to do anything.

Prometheus then picked up the suitcase containing his suit and grabbed him by the back of the collar. He put Matt over his shoulder and walked to the top of an abandoned building a little far from his ruined apartment where firemen had now arrived.

He then threw Matt off the roof, followed by the case.

"I know you are stubborn, Matthew, so you will survive this", Prometheus said, "But you will not survive the union of me and Fisk."

He then walked away, while a bloodied Matt lay below, the now broken case next to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So finally, I use some elements of 'Born Again' to get Matt to where he was in the beginning of Season 3. Of course Adrian takes Fisk's place but even he is using Fisk's resources. I am planning to use some more elements from that comic later. More than the show actually. But Daredevil Season 3 will be followed from now on to an extent.
> 
> I have no idea how to fit Vigilante into all this so let's just assume he skipped Star City because he thought Team Arrow had started doing a good job.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	5. One journey ends, another begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slade tries to reach out to Joe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Kasnia, Earth-1

"You should have stayed dead", Joe said to Slade as everyone pointed their guns at him.

"I heard you were in trouble, kid", Slade said, finally managing to regain composure, "So I thought I'd offer my help."

"My old man here to save me", Joe said unemotionally, "Last I saw, you weren't concerned with saving anyone."

He then took out a revolver and aimed it at Slade, "Apple doesn't fall that far."

Glancing at Nylander, Joe asked, "What do you think? Patricide?"

"He's seen our operation", Nylander said as he glanced at Slade, "So he's a liability."

"Yeah, you can have that choice, but I'll give you another one", Slade offered, "Let me join you."

"If I wanted a family reunion, I'd have sent an invitation", Joe said angrily.

"Maybe you did, but you just haven't realized it yet, kid", Slade said as he moved closer, until the gun was mere inches from his head, "See, I came all this way to speak with you, and I will kill anybody who gets in my way, because I got nothing left to lose, only you. So go ahead and make a decision."

The next moment was intense for everyone in the room. It looked like Joe was going to shoot Slade after all. But in the end, he lowered it and put it back inside.

"I'd be lying if I say I wasn't swayed by the poetry of it all", Joe said, "But can I trust you?"

"Trust is built upon honesty", Slade said, "I am sure you have got a lot of questions to ask me, and I've got a lot of questions for you, Joe."

"That's not my name anymore", he said, as he had accepted the name of 'Kane Wolfman.'

"Your mother named you something different to keep us apart", Slade pointed out.

"Okay", Joe said finally, "Guess we've got some catching up to do."

* * *

"Excuse the poor accomodations", Joe said to Slade as the latter sat down on a couch, "I don't plan on staying in this stain of a country for too long."

"Well, there's a reason why they say the money is in the muck", Slade said.

"I did bring one luxury, however", Joe said as he put a bottle of booze on the table.

"Oh, there's a blast from the past", Slade said as he took the bottle, "My favorite. I didn't realize you'd acquired a taste for it too."

"Like you told me, always drink good booze", Joe said as he walked back to the table and put down two glasses, "And only look out for yourself."

"Well the Jackals are an unruly bunch", Slade commented as he started pouring them both drinks while Joe sat down, "Must have been hard keeping the A.S.I.S. in the dark for so long."

"It's amazing what an agency overlooks when it's willing to leave it's own men for dead", Joe said.

Slade chuckled as he picked up his sword and sheathed it before asking, "So what kind of operation are you planning on running here? Drugs? Weapons? Perhaps a military coup."

"Let's call it a reassignment of resources", Joes said, "A lucrative one."

The two then raised their glasses and drank.

* * *

"So you and your boy, one big happy family again, huh?" Nylander asked Slade as they walked.

"That's none of your business", Slade told him bluntly, "But he told me about your new job- the reassignment of resources. Tell me about that."

"Well, if the boss didn't think to tell you, then it's none of your business, Kamrat", Nylander told him bluntly, happy to get back on him. He then walked away and said, "Meeting hall. 30 minutes."

As Slade stood alone, he heard a familiar voice calling him out, "Slade."

He turned around and saw- Oliver!

"What are you doing here?" he asked him, "You should have gone to help Matt."

"I try not to abandon anyone", Oliver said, "Even when they leave me drugged."

As Slade looked a little guilty, Oliver asked, "Now what is this reassignment of resources that your son and his men are planning?"

"You overheard that", Slade realized.

"Just like I overheard that you're planning to join his unit", Oliver said, "Your son is dangerous, Slade."

"He's just a younger version of me", Slade argued.

"No", Oliver denied, "You were never a gun for hire."

"But I was a killer", Slade pointed out before saying, "Listen kid, you'd better go away before you find yourself in trouble you can't get out of."

"I can't walk away from this", Oliver declared, "Can you?"

Slade then had an unreadable expression on his face.

* * *

The Jackals were picking out and loading their weapons while Slade sat quietly.

"Feeling at home yet, Slade, hmm?" Nylander asked, "Or should I call you Deathstroke?"

Slade gave him an annoyed look as Joe arrived and said, "Slight change of plans. 40% of our Semtex was compromised during transfer."

As Slade got up, Joe looked at him and said to everyone, ""Conveniently, however, the Kasnian army is doing some transferring of its own. I'm going to take a small team to intercept them."

"Does this jeopardize our timeline?" Nylander asked.

"Not with the infamous Deathstroke backing me up", Joe said as he looked at Slade, "What do you say, father? Interested in showing us how its done?"

"As long as your dogs can keep up?" Slade said, not at all scared of what any of them would do at the insult.

He then walked away and said, "I'm going to pack some gear."

Slade then sat down quietly near some weapons, holding his mask in one hand and a comm in the other, hidden from the others' view.

"Hey kid", he said through the comm, "The comms are working. Kane has me making a run for Semtex."

"That's a high-yield explosive", Oliver said from the other side.

"Yeah, with Nylander involved I should have expected it", Slade said.

"Well, he'll probably be handling the detonator", Oliver said in realization.

"If you can find the receiver, perhaps you can corrupt it", Slade told him, "It might be in Nylander's gear."

"Yeah, I'm on it", Oliver said before asking sympathetically, "You good?"

"Just find the receiver", Slade said, deciding not to answer the question.

* * *

Later, the Jackals set up the trap as Joe walked up to Slade with his mask.

"I always knew you'd end up wearing this", Joe said as he handed Slade his mask.

Slade looked at it for a while as Joe ordered, "Kill the lights!"

Slade put on his mask as the lights dimmed while the vehicle went over the spikes set up by the Jackals, deflating the tires.

As the vehicle skidded to a stop, the Jackals opened fire on the soldiers who were coming out. Joe shot down two of them. Slade pointed his gun at one of them but at the last moment, lowered it and shot at his feet, putting him down.

"We don't leave witnesses" Joe said as he threw away his gun and brandished his sword.

He walked over to the soldier and stabbed him brutally in the heart. Slade involuntarily took a step back, horrified by his son's brutality.

* * *

Back at the Jackals' base, Oliver stealthily made his way towards Nylander's gear and reached the door. That moment, he heard light footsteps and turned around to see two Jackals at a distance. They hadn't seen him though.

Oliver disappeared from sight. He then flew out, kicking one in the chest, knocking him out. Before the other could react, he flipped him to the ground and punched him on the face, knocking him out.

With that handled, Oliver walked over to the table with the gear. He stopped to look at some plans that were lying there. He did not notice Nylander who had spotted him from a corner.

* * *

"So what are you planning with all these explosives?" Slade asked Joe later when they were back. Joe had opened the box of Semtex and was looking at it.

"I'd like to know", Slade said.

"You missed your kill shot with the soldier back there", Joe said without looking at him.

"Well, when I lost this eye, I lost my depth perception", Slade explained.

"Most of my men think you joined me under false pretenses", Joe told him bluntly.

"There's nothing false about trying to find my son", Slade told Joe sincerely as he walked around him, "But if they doubt me, then maybe I don't have your trust."

"Of course you do", Joe assured before revealing, "Which is why I got you a little gift."

Slade barely had time to think about Joe's words when he heard footsteps. He turned around and was shocked. He struggled to keep his face blank as he saw Nylander bringing in a restrained Oliver.

"And you told me not to worry, brother", Nylander complained to Slade as he kicked Oliver on the back of the leg, making him kneel with a grunt.

"Nylander found him with my detonator. Some might see it as coincidence, but I see it as fate", Joe said to Slade, "It's time to collect on that debt he owes you, father."

Slade then turned to Oliver, giving him an intimidating look.

"Oliver Queen", he said in a menacing tone, "I've waited a very long time for this."

Mentally apologizing to Oliver, Slade punched him out.

"An eye for an eye", Joe said to him with glee, to which Slade gave a smirk, mentally repressing how disturbed he was by his son's behavior.

* * *

When Oliver regained his consciousness, he saw Slade's sword mere inches from his right eye.

"Years ago, I made you a promise", Slade declared, "Do you remember? I promised that you would suffer the same way that I suffered."

"What are you doing? You are not this person anymore", Oliver tried to reason with Slade, sensing something was very off with him.

"What I am", Slade said as he lowered the sword and walked closer, until they were mere inches apart, "Is a father, reunited with my son. I made him a promise too. And I'm not going to break it again."

"We made each other a promise, Slade. To save our sons! To save Joe, to save William", Oliver said as he saw something flicker in Slade's eye.

"He has a son?" Joe asked gleefully at Slade who seemed to shake his head, not knowing how to respond. Joe declared, "I'll make sure he suffers too."

Slade walked up behind Oliver and raised his sword, as if to strike him.

"Slade!" Oliver said, trying to reach out to him again.

"Do it!" Joe egged him on.

"Slade! Slade!" Oliver said worriedly.

Slade smirked and then brought his sword down- cutting Oliver's bonds.

Oliver jumped up and punched Joe hard on the face. Joe tried to strike back but Oliver grabbed his arm and flipped him hard on the ground, knocking him out.

As Slade stared down at Joe, Oliver grumbled, "That was a little too convincing."

As Slade looked back at him, he said, "We got to go. Come on."

Oliver then walked out as Slade picked up his helmet and followed.

Oliver fired at the Jackals who came in their way, getting two. As more fired back at them, the two took cover behind a pillar.

"There's no way out", Slade said.

"We'll make our own way out! Come on!" Oliver said as the two rushed up to a window, dodging the shots.

Slade rushed through it, shattering it as Oliver jumped after him. The Jackals stood in stunned shock as Nylander ran up to the window and looked down but there was no sign of any of them, only some pieces of shattered glass.

Joe ran over and looked down.

"I'll send out the dogs", Nylander told him.

"We've got the op. That's where they will be", Joe said confidently as he spit out a wad of blood.

"Are you sure?" Nylander asked.

"That my father will try to stop us? That's what fathers do. And that's why I'm gonna kill him", Joe said darkly.

* * *

"Before they captured me, I saw what Kane was going after", Oliver said to Slade as they walked, "They're attacking the water supply. It's a death sentence for half the country. If we move now, we'll be able to stop them."

As he said that, Oliver picked the lock of a car and then looked over at Slade, who had been silent since their escape, "If that's what you want."

"I spared your life back there", Slade said defensively, though for some reason, even he couldn't believe it.

"I know", Oliver said before pointing out, "But back there, it didn't feel like an act the same way it did with Harkness and Talia back on Lian Yu."

"Because when I saw my son, I was tempted", Slade admitted roughly, "I would've done anything to keep us together. But when you mentioned William, I realized that's not my boy. That's Kane Wolfman. But what I fear is that there might be only one way to stop him."

"Slade, there are other ways of dealing with this that don't involve killing your son", Oliver reasoned with him, "Deep down, he's your boy. So you have to reason with him, and I swear he'll listen to you."

"But I didn't tell you what happened after Lian Yu", Slade said with a haunted look in his eye, "I went home to my son, and I promised him that I would never leave. And I broke that promise."

"No, you broke that promise because of the Mirakuru", Oliver assured him.

"The Mirakuru faded for a while, but when it came back, it was like a storm I couldn't control", Slade revealed, "And that monster is what my son is trying to emulate. But with Joe, it's not Mirakuru. It's anger and resentment, and I don't know how that can be redeemed."

"Well, I didn't think you could be redeemed", Oliver pointed out, "Yet here I am, miles from my home, miles from my son, not going over to Matt's Earth to help him against Chase, trying to help you save your son. And I can do that because I know the man you were before the Mirakuru. That is the man your son needs to see. He needs to see his father, the man you are right now, tonight."

* * *

Inside a water plant, Joe and the Jackals were getting ready when Nylander walked up to them and said, "All charges are set."

Holding out the detonator, he said, "I think it should be you."

"I hired you to pull the trigger", Joe reminded him before ordering, "Move out! Get to a safe distance! Semtex makes for a pretty big bang."

"You're not coming?" Nylander asked him.

"I want a good view", Joe quipped and Nylander chuckled.

"You're crazy. I love it. Don't forget what you said about the Semtex", Nylander said before walking off.

As soon as Nylander was gone, Joe said, "I knew you'd show up."

He turned around to face Slade who was holding his mask and said, "I think its time we had ourselves an honest talk."

* * *

Outside, the Jackals were moving to do their work when someone opened fire on them. It was Oliver. The Jackals fired back but Oliver took cover behind a pillar.

One of the Jackals walked closer to the pillar but Oliver shot him, making him stagger. He then grabbed him and put him in the front as a human shield.

From behind him, he shot down a Jackal and then threw him down too before shooting down another. Another grabbed him but he shot him on the foot and then in the abdomen, putting him down.

* * *

"Trust begins with honesty", Joe reminded Slade angrily as father and son circled each other, "That's what you said to me. But you lied!"

"You know life is not that simple, Joe", Slade told him.

"That's not my name. How could you forgive Oliver Queen after what he did to you?!" Joe demanded angrily.

"Because he forgave me for far worse, sins that I have to carry to the grave! A curse I didn't want to pass on to you! All of this anger and resentment, it's time to bring it to an end, son!" Slade shouted back.

"No. It's just the beginning", Joe snarled as he pulled out his sword and the fight started.

* * *

Oliver shot down a Jackal and took his knife from his belt. Another Jackal attacked him but he sidestepped and stabbed him in the back. He retracted the knife as he blocked another Jackal's hit and punched him in the chest. He then stabbed the previous one in the back again before retracting and stabbing the other one in the chest, putting them both out.

Another tried to kick him but he grabbed his leg and hit it, making him stagger. He then retracted the knife from the previous one's chest and sliced the back of the Jackal's neck with it, putting him down.

Another attacked but he blocked and elbowed him out before blocking another's attack and stabbing him in the chest, putting him down.

He then aimed his gun at the only one who was left- Nylander, who raised his hands in surrender and held out the detonator.

* * *

Slade pushed Joe out on the bridge. Joe got up and the two clashed their blades a few times. Slade tried to strike Joe but he jumped back to avoid and the blades clashed again.

It continued for some time before they exchanged positions. Joe, being younger, could fight slightly faster and tried to slice Slade in a rotatory motion but he backed up to avoid.

Slade then blocked a punch from him and pushed him back. Joe then dodged a downward strike from Slade's sword and elbowed him, making him stagger back.

The two then clashed their swords twice and were in a deadlock as Joe snarled, "You used to be ruthless! What happened?"

The two clashed their swords again twice and were in a deadlock as Slade replied, "What you saw was the Mirakuru."

"Don't lie!" Joe shouted as the two backed up, "I saw you kill a man before the Mirakuru."

Joe rushed him but Slade grabbed him and threw him over his shoulder, flipping him to the ground.

As Joe tried to get up, Slade put his sword to his neck.

"Milford Sound", Joe said as Slade paled, "That little father-son trip, the one that you promised would be all about you and me, I saw what you did to that Chinese spy."

"I was on a mission for ASIS", Slade tried to explain.

"Well, here's something you don't know- something mother never told you- I have a brother", Joe revealed to Slade's shock, "His name is Grant. Mother didn't want him in this world."

A stunned Slade didn't make a move as Joe got up and continued, "But me, I'm my father's son. I made my first kill 6 months after our camping trip. And I slit his throat, just like you did!"

Joe followed that sentence by elbowing Slade on the face, making him fall down on his knees.

"I wanted to be exactly like my father, like Deathstroke!" Joe said as Slade realized he had indirectly put his son on this path.

Deciding he no longer wants to fight, Slade put down his sword, laying it at Joe's feet and said in a resigned voice, "I am not Deathstroke…. anymore."

"Then you're not my father anymore, you're just in my way!" Joe snarled and was moved to strike Slade.

But a gunshot rang out and knocked the sword out of Joe's hands.

"Don't move!" Oliver commanded as he aimed his gun at Joe, "Slade, are you all right?"

"Oliver, lower your gun", Slade pleaded as he gestured the same thing with his hand.

"I wish that you'd stayed dead", Joe said in a voice thick with emotion, his face showing it too.

He tossed a flare at Slade's feet who quickly ran off as it blazed. Oliver rushed up to Slade's side who was now staring at the spot where his son had vanished.

"He's gone", Slade sad brokenly.

* * *

Later, Oliver spoke to the Warden on the phone as Slade looked at the photo of him with his son back at Milford Sound.

"Thank you", Oliver said as he cut the call and walked up to Slade, "I spoke to our friend, the Warden, the Jackals are in custody, and he is very relieved."

Looking at Slade's haunted expression, he asked, "You all right?"

"My son", Slade said as he turned to face Oliver, "He saw me kill a man before the Mirakuru. Before Deathstroke. He followed in my path, Oliver."

"No, don't blame yourself, Slade", Oliver told him, "It doesn't help."

"You know why I do. "Never give up on family"", Slade said, "That's what you told me. And I think we both know Matt's part of your family too."

"I consider him part of the family", Oliver said.

"I have asked a lot of you already", Slade said, "You have helped me now, kid."

"So now what?" Oliver asked.

"Chase is on Matt's Earth", Slade said, "Now whatever Chase does to him there is on me."

"I just told you not to blame yourself", Oliver said again.

"What I am trying to say, kid, is that we both are going to his Earth to help him stop Chase", Slade revealed and Oliver's jaw almost dropped.

"What about your son?" Oliver asked.

"We will help Matt", Slade said, "And then I will search for my sons. Both of them. While you can go back home to your son."

After a deep breath, Oliver said sincerely, "Thank you Slade, for coming with me."

"Don't thank me, kid", Slade said, "Not yet."

* * *

Hell's Kitchen, Earth-199999

It was nearly morning now and Matt was still lying on the ground, brutally beaten and unconscious. Finally, a taxi passed by and the driver got out of it as soon as he saw him. The driver knelt close to him and tried to put his fingers on his neck to check if he was alive or dead.

Suddenly, Matt grabbed his hand and said in a hoarse whisper, "Father Lantom. Clinton Church."

He then immediately lost consciousness as the driver ran off to do as told.

* * *

Later, inside a church, a nun put a cloth dipped in water on Matt's wounds to wipe the blood.

"Bright idea to bring him in", another one said as she walked inside with Father Lantom.

"He's one of ours, Maggie", Lantom said, "What other choice did I have?"

"Metro-General maybe?" Maggie said, "Call 911."

"He's a vigilante", Lantom said as he pointed to the damaged suit nearby, "If he goes to a hospital, they will arrest him."

* * *

Many hours later

Matt's eyes slightly opened as he moved his bandaged hand.

"Get Maggie", one nun said to another, "Tell her he's awake."

"Chase, how?" Matt muttered incoherently as he sat up, "Oliver! Why didn't he?"

As he groaned, Maggie arrived and tried to tell him, "Stay in the bed. You'll hurt yourself."

"My right ear", Matt said as he realized he couldn't hear from it, "I can't-"

"Just stop this right now!" Maggie commanded.

Matt ended up falling off the bed. Maggie kneeled and helped the bandaged and groaning Matt sit back up a little, "Damn it, Matthew!"

"Now I can't see", he muttered incoherently to himself, "I can't see!"

_I can't see! I can't see! I can't see!_

* * *

Star City, Earth-1

Oliver had explained the situation to his team and after his son's blessing, who was still grateful to Matt for saving him and comforting him in back on Lian Yu, had packed up everything, ready to go to Earth-1.

Slade was with him too, all packed up and ready to go.

The others had asked to accompany them and even argued but Oliver had refused, saying that Star City needed to be protected from Ricardo Diaz in his absence.

"Ready, Slade?" Oliver asked as he held the interdimensional extrapolator.

"I am, kid", Slade said.

Before Oliver could press the button, a familiar voice asked, "Have room for one more?"

Oliver turned around to see Roy standing there, all packed up too.

"Roy!" Oliver said, "Why are you coming?"

"I know you will ask me to stay", Roy said, "But Matt helped me get my daughter back. And now I will help him. Thea approves of my decision."

With a sigh, Oliver said, "All right, fine! You can come."

"If that's his argument, I am coming too", Rene said, eager to join them to help his other mentor.

"No", Oliver said, "Unlike Roy here, you do not have anyone else with you to take care of Zoey. So yo should stay."

"All right", Rene gave in, not wanting to delay the three, "Good luck!"

"Good luck!" The others said simultaneously.

Laurel walked over to Oliver and to everyone's surprise, hugged him, "Come back when this is all over."

"I will", Oliver promised.

Everyone backed up as Oliver opened a breach. He then looked at everyone and nodded, before stepping inside, with Slade and Roy following.

The two then reached the other side, an empty building.

Oliver closed the breach as Roy said, "So this is Matt's Earth."

"Resembles our own, but it must be having differences", Slade said.

"Let's get started", Oliver said as the three exited the building and went onto the streets, intending to find Matt and help him against Chase.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now- Oliver, Slade and Roy are on Earth-199999 to help Matt. Here onwards, Daredevil Season 3 starts. Matt recovered from his injuries faster than in the show because whatever Adrian did is not as bad as having a building fall on him. But he is not going to be at his 100% now.
> 
> BTW, Diaz will be back later.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	6. Recovering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt tries to recover from Chase's attack but it proves harder than he thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Matt's eyes opened again. In his weakened state, he struggled to move his arm but managed to do it after some effort. He touched his right ear and moved the lobe a little, but to no effect. The injuries he had sustained due to the explosions and the fight with Adrian had damaged his hearing on that side.

"Matthew?" a familiar voice said.

"Father?" Matt asked, recognizing Father Lantom's voice, "I didn't know you were there."

"Must be strange, being back here", Father Lantom commented as he moved closer to the bed, "The place where you grew up."

"I haven't thanked you yet, Father", Matt said to him.

"Figured we could count on the nuns for their discretion", Lantom said to him, "They know who you are, but Sister Maggie swore them to secrecy, after she swore at me."

Matt wondered how Lantom could sound serious while cracking a joke.

"If you want to take Communion we could", Lantom said as he put his Bible on the bedside table, "Uh, or we could just talk."

"An old enemy of mine", Matt said, "He did this to me. He bombed my apartment and beat me to near death."

"But the police and the firemen didn't see anything like that", Lantom said, but still believed him, "I am so sorry this happened to you, Matthew. How about I take your confession and we go ahead with the Eucharist?"

"Not today, Father", Matt protested, his voice sounding weak but firm.

Lantom chuckled softly and said, "Mystical thinking is not my bag, Matthew. Hell, I'm probably the most rational crank in the whole diocrese, but even I have to admit, it is a miracle you survived."

Matt turned away from him, leaning to the other side of the bed, and said, "Our conversations, they usually go this way. I come to you with questions. You tell me what you understand about God."

"Nature of the gig, I guess", Lantom said.

"Give it a rest, shall we?" Matt asked.

"Sure", Lantom said, "I, uh, if you're ready to talk, we'll talk."

Lantom then walked off, leaving Matt alone, wondering when he will regain his hearing in the other ear.

* * *

Foggy and Karen stood outside Matt's ruined apartment and stared at it, still not believing their friend was missing. Police had marked it as a crime scene and put their tapes to prevent any entry.

"I can't believe this happened", Karen said emotionally.

"Me neither", Foggy said, "But I know it, he is not dead."

"How can you be so sure?" Karen asked.

"For one thing", Foggy said, trying to be optimistic, "There was no body-"

"What if he died somewhere else after escaping?" Karen asked.

"And for another", Foggy said, "He survived a building collapsing on him."

Karen calmed down a little and said, "I wish we could go in there."

"What will we find?" he said.

"You won't, but I will", Karen said.

"Well, it is not exactly legal, so let's not go in there", Foggy said before sincerely declaring, "But I will try my best to find him."

"I will too", Karen declared sincerely.

The two walked away. They both felt that Matt was alive, but deep down, both of them feared the worst.

* * *

"Bed's right in front of you", Sister Maggie said to Matt who stood in front of the bed, using a cane for support, "Sister Anna wired you up."

Pointing to a button, she said, "If you press that, we'll hear you upstairs and come running. Because we don't have anything better to do."

"Very Christian of you", Matt commented.

"Angry, sarcastic and stubborn", Maggie said as she walked away, "Maybe you don't have any friends."

"I do, actually", Matt said, "But I don't think I should see them now. Someone once told me that warriors are meant to be alone. That caring for people would make me weak. I cared for my friends, but when the time came, no one helped."

"That person sounds like he needed to get laid", Maggie said, "And maybe these friends of yours had a lot on their plates which is why they didn't come."

"They could have warned me at least", Matt said, feeling resentment, "And your previous comment explains a lot. But he was right, of course. I let people in, I made a life, and now I've paid the price. I won't make that mistake again."

Matt then felt some books and asked, "What is this?"

"Dug those out of storage", Maggie said, "You were probably the last one to read 'em."

Matt picked up one book and opened it, touching it with his fingers. He realized it was written in Braille.

"My Bible", he said in realization before closing it and putting it on a table, "All right. I get the hint."

"And I get the sense that things are complicated between you and the guy upstairs", Maggie said to him.

With a chuckle, Matt said, "No. Not at all. If anything, I'd say we finally know where we stand with each other."

He then started narrating, ""There was a man from the land of Uz-""

"Book of Job", Maggie reminded him.

"The Book of Job", Matt said, "The story of God's perfect servant, Job. He prayed every day at dawn, with his knees on the ground, his face on the dirt. Slaughtered ten goats, one for each of his children, and burned them at the altar in God's honor. Of all of God's soldiers, Job, he was the most loyal."

"I know the story, Matthew", Maggie pointed out.

"Oh, then you know what happens next", Matt said, getting to the point, "God murdered all ten of his children in cold blood. Scorched every inch of Job's land. Lashed at his body till his skin was covered in bloody welts. God rained shit and misery on the life of his most perfect servant. And still Job would not curse him. You know what I realized?"

Sitting on the bed, he said bluntly, "Job was a pussy. You see, that was me, Sister. I suffered willingly. I gave my, uh, sweat and blood and skin without complaint. Because I too believed I was God's soldier."

With a humorless chuckle, he said, "Well, not anymore. I am what I do in the dark now. I bleed only for myself."

Maggie untied the cross hanging on her neck and placed it in Matt's hand as a kind gesture. With a scoff, Matt threw it at the bedside table.

"You weren't listening", he said to her.

"I heard every spiteful word", she told him as she picked up the cross and hung it on the bedside lamp, "You might hate God right now, but the feeling's not mutual."

"No, I don't hate him. I have seen his true face is all", Matt corrected her, "I had friends, a life. But it was taken from me in a day, and no friend did anything. I care about people, and I am choosing to let them believe I am gone. I'm not Job", he sniffled, "And I know my truth now."

"What truth?" Maggie asked.

Matt slowly rose up from the bed and said, "Well, that in front of God, I'd rather die as the Devil than live as Matt Murdock."

* * *

Oliver, Slade and Roy were in the Columbus Library, sitting in front of the computer.

"So", Oliver said, "Matthew Michael Murdock."

He then typed Matt's name on Zabasearch and got the desired info.

Roy quickly noted the address and said, "Let's go."

"Sure thing", Oliver said.

"I hope the kid is all right", Slade said.

The three then walked out of the library and started searching for Matt's apartment.

"He will be", Oliver said, trying to assure himself more than the others, "He's tough."

But Slade and Roy were not so sure. He wasn't either.

* * *

Matt was punching the punching bag. He gave it a kick too but because of his injuries, that made him fall down.

He got up and started punching again.

"What in God's name?" Maggie said as she walked in, holding a bag.

"Do you feel that?" Matt asked as he continued punching.

"Feel what?" Maggie asked.

"Three subway lines run beneath us", Matt said as he continued punching, "At any given time, there are 6 different trains vibrating the ground. That was the E Train."

"Was it now?" Maggie said.

"You brought food", Matt said as he punched harder.

"I did", Maggie said as she started pulling food out of the bag she was carrying, "I bought-"

"Beef ravioli from Nonna's", Matt finished, having smelt it, "Nice."

"Now you're just showing off", Maggie said as she walked away while Matt continued punching.

Later, he started boxing in the air, fighting an imaginary opponent. He practiced attack and defense.

"He wants to know that he's not lost it", Maggie said as she walked in with Lantom.

"I am not comfortable with that idea", Lantom said to her.

"Now you're uncomfortable?" she asked, "Heal the body, and the spirit will follow."

"It's the other way around", he protested.

"He needs this", Maggie said firmly, "It's the only damn thing that's gotten him out of bed. So please just do it."

The two then looked at Matt, who was punching faster and looked like he was probably getting better.

"Thanks for making this happen", Matt said later as he prepared himself.

"Hands should be used for God's work", Maggie told him.

"Yeah?" Matt asked, "That's why he made me this way?"

"No. That's why he made boxing", Maggie quipped.

The door opened and Lantom arrived with a man who was about the same height and age as Matt.

"Gloves?" Matt asked as he took off his shirt.

"Helmet first", Maggie said.

"No, I can't", Matt said, "It will throw me off."

"Don't be an idiot", Maggie said as the other man took off his shirt too.

"Sister, please listen to me", Matt said, "For this to work, I have to feel and hear everything."

"Now remember the deal", Lantom said to the other man, whose name was Edmund.

Matt and Edmund then faced each other, wearing boxing gloves.

"You want me to hit a blind guy?" Edmund asked in exasperation.

Lantom raised his hands and Edmund turned back to Matt with a sigh.

"All right", Matt said.

The two first banged their glove-covered fists very lightly.

The two then banged their fists a little harder. As Matt got into fighting pose, Edmund suddenly punched him on the face, stunning him.

Before he could recover, he got another punch. Edmund tried to punch again but this time he defended with his left fist and punched Edmund, making him stagger.

Edmund panted a little as Matt got into proper fighting posture. Edmund looked at Lantom again and then attacked Matt with a punch, who leaned sideways to dodge and smacked him on the back of the head, stunning him again.

The two then faced each other again before Edmund tried to punch Matt thrice. Matt ducked to avoid all three of them. Matt then blocked another punch and gave him one on the face, stunning him.

Matt then ducked to avoid another 2 punched before punching Edmund twice. Matt then defended himself from a right hook and punched Edmund on the chest, stunning him. He then defended himself from another right hook and punched Edmund on the chest again, stunning him again.

Matt then punched Edmund a few times on the face before Lantom said, "Cut! Time!"

As the two separated, Matt asked Edmund, "You good?"

"Yeah, I'm good", Edmund said as Lantom started tending to his injuries.

"Damn, he hits hard", Edmund commented.

"It's really something", Maggie said as she tended to Matt's wounds, "To see it with my own eyes."

"Something feels off", Matt confessed to her, "It feels like I'm underwater."

"Maybe we should stop", Maggie suggested.

"No, no, no", Matt protested before saying to Edmund, "Let's go again."

The two got into fighting positions again and banged their fists lightly. Matt then tried to hit Edmund but he dodged and punched Matt on the face.

Matt blocked another blow and punched Edmund. He then ducked to avoid another blow and punched Edmund again. He then blocked a few more blows and punched Edmund again. Suddenly, Edmund punched him on the right side of the face, right on his damaged ear.

That made Matt stagger wildly, unable to hear anything properly now. Maggie and Lantom looked at him in concern as he tried to block a few more blows but got hit on the arm and then on the right ear again, this time falling down.

Before he passed out, he could hear Lantom calling out his name in concern.

* * *

Later, Matt sat on his bed, feeling depressed.

"You should see the other guy", Maggie said as she walked in, making Matt chuckle very lightly.

"For what it's worth", Maggie said as she took off the cross from the lamp, "You were incredible."

She sat on the bed, facing Matt and put the cross around his neck.

"Thank you", Matt said as she adjusted it a little on his neck, "Sister I-"

"Did your head spin around?" Maggie asked, shutting him up, "Then wear it for me."

As Maggie gave a heavy sigh, Matt said gratefully, "You've been very kind to me."

"I have, haven't I? And patient. Very, very patient", Maggie said, making Matt chuckle.

"Don't tell anyone", she requested him, "They'll all think I've gone soft."

"No", Matt said with a slight smile, "I don't think there's any danger of that."

Maggie then put her hand on the stitch on Matt's forehead, "Let me look at you."

"I used to sew up my dad", Matt said, "And your stitches are perfect."

"Well, there's plenty of practice around here", she said and then stared at Matt, deep in thought.

"Everything okay?" Matt asked.

"Yeah", she said, snapping out of it, "It's fine. I just have to get back upstairs."

She then gave him an icepack which he put on his head while she walked away. She turned around and asked, "I don't suppose there's any hope you'd come to Mass with me?"

"Maybe next time", Matt said.

"I'll hold you to that" Maggie said and walked away.

A while later, Matt heard the sound of the Church Choir singing.

He then put the icepack away and got up, deciding there was work to be done. He went into the basement and took out some clothes from the bag. He then put a small white cloth under a black one, wrapping it over the white one to make a mask with padding underneath.

* * *

 

Matt stood on top of the Clinton Church, clinging to the Holy Cross on the top. He was now wearing the padded black mask which only left his mouth uncovered and he also wore a black suit. He now looked a lot like he had in his first year as a vigilante.

"Hey! Hey!" he heard a woman saying, "Get off him! Hey, what're you doing? Stop! Stop!"

* * *

Two kidnappers were beating up an old man in front of his daughter, who was begging them to stop.

Matt suddenly jumped out of the shadows and grabbed one of them, pulling him off the man and slammed him into his truck.

He then punched the man twice on the face before being kicked off. As the man got up, Matt kicked him away and punched him twice, making him stagger. The man then grabbed him and threw him down. He then ripped off some plastic and wrapped it around Matt's face, trying to strangle him. Matt managed to grab his hand and twisted his fingers, making him let go. He then elbowed him, making him stagger, and then turning around, kicked him out of the truck. He ripped the plastic off his face and threw it away.

He then slowly got up and staggered out of the truck from another side.

"Help!" Get off!" the woman shouted as the other one tried to grab her. Matt moved towards them from the side of the truck. As soon as he was behind the backdoor, he closed it, revealing himself to the surprised man. He punched him, stunning him, while the woman helped her dad back up. Matt slammed the man on the back of the truck and punched him in the abdomen and on the face.

The other one grabbed him from behind but Matt elbowed him, making him let go. He then slammed the man on the door again before the elbowed one returned to the fray, punching him. He tried to kick Matt but he staggered out of the way, making the man kick the taillight instead, injuring his foot.

Matt got into fighting posture as the woman helped her dad to the car, "Stay with me! We'll get you to the hospital."

One of the men punched Matt again, making him stagger. Matt recovered in time and blocked the other punch before punching the man. The man grabbed him by the waist. Matt punched him on the side, trying to make him let go. He picked up Matt and slammed him on the back of the truck, trying to hit him with a rod.

At the last moment, Matt pushed him off and kicked him away with both feet, making him drop the rod. As he tried to get out, the other man tried to kick the door on his face but he got out first, punched the man in the abdomen, grabbed him from the back and pushed him towards the rear-view mirror, before slamming his head in it, knocking him down.

He then heard the woman driving her car away to the hospital, her injured dad next to her.

"Go!" Matt yelled to them.

"Hey asshole", the previous man said as he got back up, "This was none of your business."

Matt got ready to fight but the man grabbed him by the throat and slammed him on the other side of the road. He punched Matt twice before he pushed him off, only to get punched by the other man on the face, making him spit out a wad of blood.

The two men then punched him simultaneously, one of them hitting his right ear, making him stagger around violently. The two then kneed him in the abdomen together and threw him down.

The two then kicked him and slammed their feet on his chest, weakening him. They then walked away.

"We should kill this son of a bitch", one of them said to the other.

"Nah, leave him", the other said.

Matt got up, sitting on his knees and picked up a stick.

"Hold on", he said to them, making them stop. He threw the stick to one of them and then waited for them to beat him up.

"God forgive me", he said.

The man was about to beat him up when he heard police sirens. "Leave him, let's get out of here", he said as he threw away the stick and the two ran off.

Matt sat on his knees, panting heavily. But by the time the police van arrived on the scene, the only thing there was the stick.

* * *

Ray Nadeem walked into the F.B.I. Headquarters in New York, looking to talk to his superior- Tammy Hattley, about his performance review.

He looked around, looking at familiar faces. But one of them was a new one. A handsome man of height 5'11".

"Excuse me, sir, I don't believe I've seen you around here before", Nadeem said as he walked to the man.

"Oh, that's right", the man said, "I just got transferred here from the Ohio branch. Crazy place, this New York City."

"What's your name?" Nadeem asked.

"Chase", the man said, "Special Agent Adrian Chase."

Chase then brought forth his hand. A moment later, Nadeem took it, "Special Agent Ray Nadeem."

"Nice to meet you, Agent Nadeem", Chase said.

"Same here, Agent Chase", Nadeem said as he remembered what he was here for, "I have to talk to my superior."

"Go ahead", Chase said as Nadeem walked away.

* * *

Later, Nadeem sat in a room, having been assigned to an errand he did not like. With him, the transferred agent, Adrian Chase had been assigned to this too. The man was sitting next to him, no expression on his face.

The door buzzed and opened. The two watched as a handcuffed Fisk, wearing his orange prison uniform, walked in and sat in front of them.

"Mr. Fisk, I'm Special Agent Ray Nadeem with the Federal Bureau of Investigation", Nadeem said as he held out his badge.

"I'm Special Agent Adrian Chase", Chase said as held out his, "The FBI wants your assistance-"

"Let's cut to the part where you tell me to eat shit, so we can stop wasting each other's time, huh?" Nadeem said.

"Tell me, Special Agent Nadeem", Fisk said, "Do you have anyone in your life who you love so much, that you'd do anything to protect them?"

"Was that a threat?" Nadeem asked.

"That did not sound like a threat, Agent Nadeem", Chase said in a whisper, a smile on his face, "That was a question. A straight one. You should be more perceptive."

"Agent Chase is right", Fisk said, "I have made many mistakes, but I accept the debt I am paying because of them. But what I will not accept is that the woman I love should have to pay for them too. I would do anything to protect her. Anything."

"Very good, Mr. Fisk", Chase said in a whisper, "We should always think about our loved ones. They should never be involved in all the dangerous things done by people like us."

"What're you trying to say?" Nadeem asked.

Chase said, "I think he's trying to say-"

"I want to make a deal", Fisk finished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Adrian Chase has infiltrated the FBI now to work with Fisk. Not a stretch for him. Oliver, Slade and Roy will get a bigger role next chapter.
> 
> In the 'Born Again' storyline, Matt got paranoid enough to think everyone was conspiring against him and even thought Foggy was part of the conspiracy. So now I'm just playing on that a little. He has some resentment towards Oliver for not warning him about this also towards Elektra for not being around. So the reunion won't be the most pleasant one.
> 
> But Matt is not childish like Iris or Felicity so he will get over this quickly.
> 
> Matt is still not at his 100%.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	7. Looking for clues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver, Slade and Roy manage to find out some clues. Matt goes out again to fight for justice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Matt sat on the ground in the Clinton Church, feeling very depressed. A lot more depressed than when the boxer had beaten him up. While he had saved the father-daughter duo, he had taken a really bad beating.

Months ago, he could beat an entire hallway of Hand ninjas and now two thugs were giving him trouble. Adrian Chase had made him incapable of fighting for his city. For those he had cared about.

* * *

Fisk sat in his cell. The deal had finally been accepted. Like he had told Prometheus, he had started executing his plan. But this Agent Chase intrigued him. The way he spoke, he seemed like he was subtly supporting him.

There was more to him than met the eye. Perhaps he himself would tell it later.

* * *

"FBI!"

The agents lead by Chase and Nadeem stormed the place, arresting all the Albanians.

Nadeem saw a maid holding a tray and aimed at her, "FBI! Don't move!"

She dropped her tray in shock and fear.

"Play easy, Nadeem", Chase said to him in a whisper.

He walked over to the woman until he was mere inches from her and whispered, "Don't worry. Your employers were 10 steps behind. But nothing will happen to you, as long as you're not involved with them."

They looked up and saw a woman scared from them trying to run away.

"Freeze!" Nadeem yelled.

The FBI ran over to get her but Chase outran the other agents and grabbed the woman by the wrist, putting her down.

"You're under arrest for resisting arrest", Chase whispered to her as he cuffed her.

The others moved into the room and arrested a man and a woman.

Nadeem then watched as an agent lead their cuffed leader out.

"Get these cuffs off me", he said, "I've got the right to an attorney."

"You will get one", Chase whispered to him, "Just don't be an asshole to him."

The agent then led the man into the FBI vehicle.

Nadeem looked satisfied.

* * *

Nadeem and Chase walked into headquarters and saw everyone applauding them for their work.

"You two got that asshole", Agent Wellers said to Nadeem and Chase as he gave them manly hugs.

"Yeah", Nadeem said, "Got his number one and two also. And two judges. And district captain. A freakin' deputy Mayor."

"And I thought my previous city was corrupt", Chase commented, "The police department there never really found its footing."

"It's gonna be a messy day at City Hall", Wellers said, "The Albanians had to be buying off those guys with more than tail."

"Burgos got their computers, so we're gonna find their money", Nadeem said, "Once we start tracking it, who knows how far this goes?"

"All because of Wilson Fisk", Chase said in his whisper, "Because of him, we're ten steps ahead of everyone."

'I am ten steps ahead of everyone', he said in his head.

* * *

Fisk was lifting heavy weight with the help of a spotter.

Suddenly, the spotter said, "Snitch!"

He then brandished a shank and stabbed Fisk at the side of the abdomen. Fisk roared in anger and pain and threw him away with the weight, pinning him under it.

He then got up and towered over the man. He pressed the weight against the man's neck, slowly choking him before letting go.

He then picked up a dumble and towered over his attacker, ready to bring it down on him.

"No! No! No!" the man begged.

At the last moment, Fisk sighed and threw the dumble away. He then sat down quietly as guards arrived to take the attacker into solitary confinement.

* * *

Matt lay passed out on the floor of Clinton Church.

"What did you do, Matthew?" Maggie asked as she stood over him while his eyes opened and he groaned.

She knelt close to him and asked, "Where did you go last night?"

As Matt groaned more, Maggie put her hand on his face and said, "Hey, don't pull that crap on me. What happened?"

"Go away", Matt whispered to her.

"I put in way too much work on you to quit now", Maggie said as she helped him sit up, "Up. Move your ass."

Matt managed to get up and staggered a little before following Maggie.

"So you get beat by a guy who wasn't even trying to hurt you and your brilliant next move is to go out and pick another fight?" she asked.

Due to the blow to his right ear, Matt's head was ringing and he still felt underwater. But he could still hear her.

"Take these", Maggie handed him some pills as he stood in front of a mirror. Matt put them in his mouth and drank them up with water as Maggie said, "A word of advice, Mr. Daredevil, give yourself time to heal, or you're going to get yourself killed."

"You're probably right", Matt said.

"Is that what you wanted?" Maggie asked. Matt lowered his head and sighed.

"I have a special gift too", she said to him, "I am impervious to bad attitude. So you can throw your self-pitying bullshit at me, and I'll still be standing right here. Pissed off, maybe, but right here."

Matt staggered and sat down under the stairs.

"You're gonna talk to me", she said firmly to him.

"Why did you become a nun?" Matt asked her.

"I heard God's call", she replied.

"So you feel like being a nun is what you're meant to be?" Matt asked.

She nodded and replied, "Yes. Very much."

"What if you couldn't be one anymore?" Matt asked her, "What if it were taken from you?"

"Your point being that if we can't fulfill our calling, we might be better off as worm food?" Maggie asked him.

"Answer the question", he said firmly.

"I'll tell you what I wouldn't do", she said, "I wouldn't lose faith. I'd find some other purpose."

"If you can be anything else, then it was never really your calling", Matt said, "Just tell me, honestly. If you couldn't be a nun anymore, wouldn't you grieve?"

"Of course I would", Maggie said.

"Then please, go away", he requested her.

Instead of going away, she walked up to him and said, "I understand what it's like to feel lost, Matthew. It happened to me too, once. A long time ago, when I was a novitiate, I left the order for a while."

"Why?" Matt asked.

"Because I was considering I very different life", Maggie said, "It was wonderful and terrifying. I struggled to know which life God wanted me to choose. I prayed. I looked for signs. In the end, I just had to do my best to figure it out."

"Well, there you go", Matt said as he rose and walked away from her, "That is the difference between us. I no longer care what God wants."

"Oh, right", Maggie said, "Almost forgot. You've seen his true face now."

Matt sat on the bed and considered his next move.

* * *

"How the hell did you let this happen?" Nadeem asked the guard as he walked to the prison infirmary with Chase.

The guard replied, "Don't pin this shit on us. He's your snitch."

"You are the guard", Chase said to him in an intimidating whisper, "You should observe your prisoners' actions carefully."

The guard was unnerved enough to shut his mouth and even Nadeem seemed uncomfortable.

The two entered the infirmary where Fisk was on the bed.

"You okay?" Nadeem asked, "The doctor said it was superficial."

"I find it quite profound", Fisk said.

"Don't start. We're not playing games", Nadeem said.

"It's deadly serious for me", Fisk said.

"What? Some guy with a shank?" Nadeem asked him.

"It's not something I fear a great deal", Fisk said, "But we're not dealing with one person here. Word is out. Everyone knows. Guards and inmates, it seems they know I'm cooperating with you."

"Which you're going to continue to do, Mr. Fisk", Nadeem said, "This was not a one-off. You want us to help Vanessa clear herself of criminal charges, you need to continue to deliver actionable information. Do you understand?"

"Agent Nadeem", Chase whispered to him, "I think we're not understanding Mr. Fisk's positon in this case. He can't deliver actionable information to keep us ten steps ahead if he's dead."

"I'm a target within these very walls", Fisk said, agreeing with Chase, "Agent Nadeem, understand what Agent Chase is telling you."

Chase then observed Nadeem's conflicted expression with interest.

* * *

Matt walked to the praying area of the Church, wearing a cap and glasses along with a jacket and also carried a walking stick.

Matt turned his head here and there, reminded of when he listened to people praying as a kid. But right now, he couldn't do that.

"Glad to see you up here, Matthew", Lantom said as he walked up to him.

"I used to listen to people's prayers", Matt said, "In here and out on the street. You know, people asking for God's help or justice or even vengeance sometimes. See, it's always the same", Matt then mimicked the tone of the people who prayed, ""Please God"", and then he told Lantom what was in his mind, "I thought that God let me hear the prayers so that I could answer. So that's what I did. That's what I was trying to do, was trying to help people. But I am unable to do that now. I can't do it."

"Give it time", Lantom advised, "Whatever your new reality is, I'm sure you will adjust."

"When I heard all those prayers, all those suffering people, I thought it was God's voice", Matt said, "But I was wrong. All I ever heard was people in pain. And all he ever gave any of us was…. silence."

"So now you believe your calling to do what you do was a mistake?" Lantom asked him.

"I was deluding myself", Matt said.

"Maybe that's a good thing to realize, Matthew", Lantom said, "Maybe it's time for you to stop."

"Oh no, Father", Matt corrected him, "Uh, my delusion was thinking God had anything to do with it. I'm not as capable as I should be, but I don't get to choose who I am. I'm Daredevil. Not even God can stop that now."

A stunned Lantom could only watch in concern as Matt walked out of the church.

Matt walked out into the street and realized there was a pickup truck there.

He walked to the back where a man was sitting, doing his financial calculations.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for a dry cleaner", Matt said.

"Not doing pickups right now", the man said without even turning, "But we're on 14th Street. Address is on the side there."

With a light chuckle, Matt said, "Here's where it gets awkward. I'm actually looking for a different place."

The man turned and saw that Matt was blind, "I got a whiff of their delivery van last night. It didn't smell like this. Not like chemicals. It was more herbal."

"Kinda grassy, maybe?" the man asked, thinking he knew the place.

"Yeah, sure like that", Matt said as he remembered.

"I know the place", the man said.

* * *

Oliver, Slade and Roy reached Matt's apartment. As they got to his door, they were shocked by what they saw.

There was police tape everywhere, covering the place. They could not enter.

The three paled, thinking the worst had happened.

"It can't be", Oliver said, feeling guilt.

"Think with your head, kid", Slade said roughly, "Just because this is a crime scene doesn't necessarily mean a murder took place here. Let's ask the neighbors what happened."

At that, Oliver's eyes lit up and he said, "Right! You're right."

"Let's go", Roy said as he walked to another door and knocked.

An old lady opened it and asked, "What can I do for you?"

"Uh, that apartment with the police tape", Roy said, "Do you know anything about what happened there?"

"Well, I do peek around a lot", the woman said, "But I don't know the full thing. I heard some explosions and next thing you know, fire-fighters and police were all over the place. Some blind guy lived there, but the body was not found."

At that, Oliver felt a little relieved and said to the woman, "Thank you for your help, Ma'am."

As the woman closed the door, Slade said, "The advantages of using your head."

"The place is off limits though", Roy said.

"Well", Oliver said, "We're vigilantes. So doing it the legal way isn't really an option."

"Yup", Roy said.

The three looked around to check if anyone was watching. There was no one. Not even the lady who had helped them. The three knelt down, went under the tape, and entered the apartment.

They looked around. The place was ruined. The table and chairs were in splinters. The couch was burnt to ash. The cupboard doors were in splinters too but the stuff inside hadn't been damaged.

"This has to be Chase", Oliver growled with clenched fists.

"The man certainly has a taste for the theatrics", Slade said.

"Look", Roy said as he pointed at the ground.

Oliver and Slade saw many drops of blood there. All dried up.

"Must be Matt's blood", Oliver said.

There were pieces of shrapnel there too, uncollected.

"Looks like something was fired", Slade said, "And the shrapnel hit Matt."

"From over there, I think", Oliver said as he pointed at a rooftop beyond the shattered window.

"The cops here seem as inefficient as the one on our Earth", Roy commented.

"No kidding", Slade said.

Oliver looked at the blood drops again and said, "Look carefully."

The three looked and realized there was a trail of dried blood drops.

The three followed the trail to the window.

"Looks like he is as tough as you said after all", Slade said.

"It doesn't end here", Oliver said and walked back inside. He then ducked under the police tape and walked out of the apartment, Slade and Roy following.

The three ran out of the building and onto the street. There, Oliver arrived at the spot that was below Matt's window.

Slade looked at the ground and said, "Some dried blood drops here too."

Oliver and Roy looked down and saw that Slade was right.

"They appear a little more concentrated here", Oliver said, "He was here for a while."

"But look", Roy said, "There are a few small drops on the street."

Oliver and Slade looked there and saw that Roy was right.

"So the fight went to the other side of the road", Oliver said as he crossed the street, Slade and Roy following.

They reached the other side and saw even more dried blood drops.

"So he was here", Slade said.

"But wait", Oliver said, "The trail goes on."

There were more blood drops, leading them away from there.

Oliver, Slade and Roy followed them. They seemed to disappear at certain points and reappear later.

The three ended up climbing a medium-sized building and reached its rooftop.

The three then looked down from there and saw a pool of dried blood. But no one was there.

As no one was around, Oliver jumped down, with Slade and Roy jumping after him.

He looked at the dried blood and concluded, "So Chase bombed his apartment, fought him on the street, beat him, brought him over here, and threw him down."

"All right, now I think the police really are incompetent", Slade said.

"As incompetent as writers of soap operas", Roy said.

"Where would he have gone from here?" Oliver muttered to himself before saying out loud, "Perhaps a car stopped on seeing him and drove him to a hospital."

"It's possible", Slade said, "And I think hospitals are not the hardest thing to find."

"Slade is right", Roy said.

"Let's go then", Oliver said and started walking as the two followed.

* * *

Later- Oliver, Slade and Roy had been to a few hospitals and were now at Riverbank Hospital. As they walked through the waiting hall, they heard a woman saying, "Yeah, it's Karen Page."

Oliver's eyes widened in recognition. So did Roy's. Slade was a little confused.

"Karen Page?" Roy whispered to Oliver, "As in Matt's friend?"

"I think so", Oliver said.

The three turned their heads to see the owner of a voice, a young, blonde, beautiful woman. She was trying to speak to another woman, who looked shaken from something.

"So that's a friend of Matt?" Slade asked in a whisper.

"I think so", Oliver whispered, "Matt said she's a reporter at a newspaper and here she is, interviewing this other woman."

"Perhaps we should talk to her", Roy said.

"Later", Oliver said, "And she maybe as clueless as we are."

The three sat on the opposite side of the waiting hall and pretended to read magazines, deciding to talk to her when she was out of the hospital.

What Karen was telling the other woman got Oliver's attention.

"But people said that I killed my brother", she said to the woman.

"God, I'm sorry", the woman said.

"You know, when Kevin died, everyone wanted to know what happened", Karen narrated to the woman after a sad sigh, "And I wasn't like you, not paparazzi or anything, but it's a small town. Stuff kinda gets around on its own. But since no one knew the story, they made one up. It was all bullshit. If you thought about it for ten seconds, it didn't make any sense, but why should that matter, right? The problem was, once the story got out there, it stuck. It grew, and it got darker, and, um, meaner. And the things they said about my family and me, it, um, sort of tore us apart, piece by piece and lie by lie. And, um, I didn't really know how to deal with it back then. Now I guess it's too late."

"Poor woman", Slade whispered after having heard the whole thing.

Oliver's and Roy's faces were emotionless masks but they were saddened by her story. And it seemed like even Matt didn't know about it.

But as the other woman was narrating her ordeal, the three heard something very interesting.

"We only got away because this other guy attacked them", the woman told Karen.

"What other guy? You said there's another guy?" Karen asked as she turned her head to the woman.

"Yeah", the woman said, "He came out of nowhere. He had this black mask over his face."

Karen seemed shocked to hear it and so did Oliver, Slade and Roy. Matt used to wear a black mask in his first year. What if he was wearing it again?

* * *

Karen walked out of the hospital, intending to go over to Foggy to tell him about this.

But then a blonde man with a light beard stepped in her way and said, "Karen Page!"

"W-What do you want?" Karen asked, suddenly on the defensive.

"Don't worry", Oliver said, raising his hands, "I'm not here to hurt you."

"Why are you here?" she asked.

"We want to discuss something, Miss Page", Slade said as he walked over to Oliver with Roy.

"Who the hell are you three?" she asked, sounding aggressive, though she felt fear inside.

"Like they said", Roy said gently, "We are not here to hurt you. We want to discuss something."

"What?" Karen asked them.

"Matt Murdock", Oliver said.

Karen's eyes widened in shock and she backed off, thinking these were Federal Agents who were going to arrest her for being involved with a vigilante.

"He's a friend of ours", Oliver said, "And we know he's gone missing."

"A friend?" Karen asked, "Who are you people?"

"My name is Oliver Queen", Oliver introduced himself.

Karen's eyes lit up on hearing that name. Then she remembered. Matt had told her about going off to a faraway city and he had made friends there. The best one being Oliver Queen.

"He mentioned you", Karen said, "What are you doing here?"

"We think we know the reason behind his disappearance", Roy said.

Karen eyed the three. They looked dangerous, especially the one with the eyepatch. But the clean-shaven one looked fine.

Matt had spoken highly of Oliver Queen. But what if this was someone else, posing as Oliver?

"We understand your concerns", Oliver said, "But we're telling the truth. Matt has told us things that only you would know. And we know he is Daredevil."

"You know?" Karen asked.

"It's a long story", Oliver said, "But we won't harm you or anyone else. Please believe us. We are here to help."

"Tell me something Matt told you", Karen demanded.

"He told me he met you when him and Foggy decided to defend you from a murder charge by Union Allied", Oliver told her.

No one knew that outside New York City. So if they knew, only Matt could have told them.

After a sigh, Karen said, "I'm listening."

The three then walked with her and started telling her about how they met Matt. A short concise version of course. Not that it made it less complicated.

After they finished, Karen's head was reeling.

"Okay, so there is more than one Earth?" Karen asked in exasperation.

"Look, I know this sounds crazy", Oliver said, "6 years ago, I wouldn't have believed it either."

He then took out the interdimensional extrapolator. Karen looked at it with interest, having never seen anything like it before.

"This device helps us to travel through the different Earths", Oliver told her.

"Oh!" Karen said before coming to the point, "So you are vigilantes on your Earth. Matt showed up and helped you take down some psycho called Adrian Chase. Now he got out, came to this world and is after Matt."

"Pretty much", Slade said.

"And I thought my life was crazy before", Karen muttered.

"Please trust us", Roy said.

With a sigh, Karen said, "I do. I think you're all telling the truth. Truth can be messed up sometimes."

"We went to his house to investigate what happened", Oliver said and Karen looked at him curiously, "He escaped and I think he's alive. But he's not at any hospital."

"I have no idea where he could have gone", Karen said, "But thank you for helping."

"Matt's our friend", Roy said, "He helped us, even though it wasn't his world. If we can do the same for him, we will."

By now, the four were outside Nelson Meats, the diner owned by Foggy's father.

"Okay, I think you three should remain outside", Karen said, "Don't want to startle Foggy with new, dangerous looking people. No offense."

"None taken", Slade said, knowing the comment was for him.

A few minutes later, Karen came out, looking angry.

"What happened?" Oliver asked.

"He's not ready to believe me that the vigilante could be Matt", Karen said.

"It could be him", Roy said, "50-50 chance."

"I know", Karen said, "But his reasoning is that Matt did not reach out to us so he's not around. Can't believe he changes his mind so quickly."

"Well, maybe he is recovering somewhere", Slade said, "Which is why he did not reach out."

"I hope so", Karen said before asking, "You three got any place to stay?"

"Not really", Oliver said.

"Well, you're all welcome to stay at my place, though it's a little small", Karen offered.

"No problem, Miss Page. Thank you", Oliver said gratefully, Slade and Roy doing the same.

"It's just Karen", she said and then the four walked to her home, deciding to rest for the night and then think of their next move.

* * *

Matt entered the laundry building from the exit door, wearing the black suit with the black padded mask on top. He had managed to trick the man into giving him a coupon and in the process, discovered his twisted finger. The same one he had twisted the previous night.

So Matt knew this man was one of the attempted kidnappers from the previous night and the other one would be here too.

Matt walked downstairs and then turned his head here and there, trying to hear something. He opened a briefcase and realized there was a gun inside.

He then heard footsteps so he quickly closed the case and walking over to the power grid, turned it off, making the place dark.

Matt then hid in the shadows as the man said, "God damn it! We must have blown a fuse."

As he walked over to the power grid, Matt walked over to him.

"You?" the man said as he turned around and recognized Matt.

Before he could do a thing, Matt, who was holding a wire, hit him with it, electrocuting him. He then slammed his head on the wall and he was out.

He turned around to face the other man. He punched the man, stunning him.

The man tried to attack but Matt blocked. The two grabbed each other in a deadlock. The man slammed Matt onto a shelf and then punched him on the face and the side.

Matt managed to block more punches with his elbows. He grabbed the man by the shoulder and slammed him on the shelf before pushing him off.

Matt realized he had been hit slightly on the right ear and staggered a little due to the damage. The man grabbed him by the collar as the previous man got up and attacked with a rod. Matt freed himself in time to dodge the rod.

Matt threw him down as the other man also attacked with a rod he had picked up. Matt dodged. The man tried to kick but Matt grabbed his leg and threw him on the ground.

Matt staggered away as the other man got up. Matt took out a small box from the crate and hit him with it before grabbing him and slamming him onto a fence.

He then punched him twice before he sensed the other man getting up. He walked up to him, grabbed him and slammed him onto the fence too.

And then, he punched both of them back to back, not giving them any opening. Finally, they were both down. One of them tried to get up again but Matt gave him a hard punch and he was out.

He then tied them up there and walked up to the landline phone. He dialed 911 and said. "Yeah, I'd like to report an assault. I don't know what happened but I see a lot of guns here. Maybe some kind of robbery."

He then put the phone down and walked out, feeling better.

* * *

Neda Kazemi sat next to her father's bed, looking at his unmoving form. She felt broken. She could only hope his condition got better.

Suddenly, the lights were out and she turned around to see the man who had attacked her attackers the previous night.

"You!" she exclaimed as she got off her chair.

He tilted his head and said in realization, "Your father…. is in a coma."

"He's alive", she said, "Why did you help us?"

"The men who did this are in police custody for another crime", Matt told her, "You head down to the 15th Precinct right now, you can identify them."

"You caught them?" she asked him.

"You should go", Matt said as he started leaving.

"Thank God for you", she said to him sincerely.

Hearing that, Matt stopped and turning to her said, "He didn't help you. I did."

He then walked off, leaving her behind.

* * *

A cuffed Fisk sat in the back of the van which was driven by Nadeem, with Chase next to him. He was being escorted to a penthouse.

"You will be under the strict supervision of my team", Nadeem said, "You will not remove your ankle monitor. You will not pass the boundaries shown to you. You will continue to have a strictly regulated schedule. That means eating, sleeping, shitting, whenever I say. Do you understand Mr. Fisk?"

"I think he does", Chase said to Nadeem, "And I really think you should stop exaggerating stuff."

"I am not exaggerating", Nadeem said in an annoyed tone, "And stop with all this whispering and intimidating."

"Mr. Chase, how do you manage to intimidate people like that?" Fisk asked out of curiosity.

"A magician never reveals his tricks, Mr. Fisk", Chase said with a smirk. Fisk's eyes lit up on hearing that. Suddenly, everything made sense to him.

"Mr. Nadeem", Fisk then said passionately, "I have spent much of my life alone. And for many years, I pretended that this was the source of my strength. I told myself I had free will. And in that time, I achieved a great deal. But I was not fulfilled. I was longing for a connection that I could imagine but not achieve. Searching and not finding. Until Vanessa. Until I discovered love. I thought I would explode with the power and sense of freedom that she brought me. That the world lay at my feet. But then that passed when I discovered the great lie at the heart of love. That what I took for true freedom was precisely the reverse. You can build a prison of stone and steel, but you merely present the prisoner with a challenge. Any truly determined man will find a way out. But love. Love is the perfect prison. Inescapable. So you see, Agent Nadeem, I am always in prison, wherever I go", he then gestured to his cuffs, "And if these things help me protect Vanessa, then they are nothing to me. I will do whatever I must."

Ray and Chase were silent for a moment, the former absorbing his words.

"Well said, Mr. Fisk", Chase commented, "You know true love."

Suddenly, the FBI transport in front of them exploded. There was another explosion underneath their very vehicle and it toppled.

Fisk hit his head hard and everything blackened.

* * *

Fisk's eyes opened. He felt queer and realized he was upside down, still cuffed in the van. He shook his head and looked around. The agents at the back were dead.

He straightened himself and sighed before yelling, "Nadeem! Chase!"

Suddenly, there were gunshots nearby. Fisk panicked. He then used all his might to pull the cuffs downwards in an effort to break them. He grunted angrily, using all his might as some gunshots hit the van.

Finally, the chain snapped and he was free, though still trapped in the van.

He looked out of the window and saw the FBI Agents engaged in a gunfight with armed men. The agents were outnumbered though and were gunned down.

One of the agents ran to the van yelling, "Grenade!"

A grenade exploded behind him though he barely avoided it. He knelt near the van and looking at Fisk said, "Stay down."

Next moment, his blood splattered on the window as someone shot him on the head.

The men moved closer to the van, demanding Fisk to come out. Fisk remained crouched inside, panicking every moment. The only one he could think of was Vanessa.

'Forgive me my love', he said to himself in his head.

One of the men tapped the window and when no one responded, he fired at it. The bulletproof glass held though.

Fisk knew this was the end and kept apologizing to Vanessa mentally, waiting for it to happen. For the first time in a long time, he felt fear.

Suddenly, there was a gunshot and the man fell dead.

"I am someone you do not want to screw with", Chase said to him, ready to fire. He had crawled outside the van. But before he could do anything else, a gunshot came from another direction and one of the men fell dead, a bullet wound on his head.

An agent walked up to them from behind, firing his gun. Each shot was a headshot as one thug went down with one bullet,

Fisk then looked out of the window at the agent who slid behind a car to avoid the gunshots and then emerged, firing three shots, killing the three men.

"Brilliant!" Chase commented.

Fisk then observed the agent and Chase did too, impressed by his marksmanship. Chase had never seen someone whose every shot was a headshot. Neither had Fisk.

He killed two men with two shots and saw a third one running away through some smoke produced by the blast. In spite of the blinding smoke, the agent fired a shot and the man was dead.

Two men stepped out with raised hands and said to the agent, "Don't shoot. Don't shoot. We surrender."

"Do it", Chase said to him, "You want to and you like it."

The agent then fired two shots and they were both dead.

The agent then took out the empty cartridge from his gun as two men ran up to him and Chase from behind.

He then threw the gun and the cartridge simultaneously at the men. The two men were both hit at their throats by the gun and cartridge respectively and the agent had thrown them so hard that they had embedded into the men's throats. The men fell down, dead.

A third man ran up to them but Chase threw a shuriken at his throat, killing him.

Fisk then observed from inside as the agent retracted his gun and cartridge from the men's throats while Chase did the same with his shuriken.

Fisk kicked the door open and crawled out. As he stood up straight, a voice said to him, "Convict! Don't move!"

Fisk looked up to see the sharpshooting agent pointing his gun at him, Chase walking up next to him. Fisk did as he was told as sirens blared in the distance.

* * *

Matt walked out of the hospital after having changed to his regular outfit.

He then heard a stretcher coming being pushed in and got out of the way, "Sorry."

Suddenly, he started hearing voices, "Yeah! It's gonna be a lot to take in."

These were just random conversations of people but the thing was, Matt was hearing them with his right ear. His right ear was working again!

As he walked further out, he heard sirens blaring very clearly. That was because both the ears were now working.

The ambulances stopped as doctors rushed out and lead the patients inside on stretchers.

"Goddamn Albanians killed everyone except Fisk", he heard one man say.

Fisk! How was that possible?

"Somebody said he's en route to the safe house", he heard someone else say.

Safe house?! Why was a high-profile criminal like him being lead to a safe house when he belonged in prison?

"It's a damn shitshow", a woman said, "The FBI just let Wilson Fisk out of prison."

What the fuck?! Why would the FBI do that? Fisk was one of the worst criminals of New York.

Matt's head was reeling now. First he gets attacked by Adrian Chase who also bombs his apartment. Then, his right ear stops working and he was weak enough to get beaten by two thugs. Later, he managed to beat the thugs. But when he regained the use of his right ear, the first thing he hears is that Fisk is out of prison because of the FBI?

God really thought of him as the next Job.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is over too. Poor Matt. Such a hard time for him.
> 
> So Oliver, Slade and Roy meet Karen and things get interesting,
> 
> I think we all know the sharpshooter in the end. Even Chase is fascinated by him, just like Fisk.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	8. Devils on the shoulders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt sneaks into the hotel while Oliver, Slade and Roy try to investigate a hunch. Fisk and Chase make a plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Water poured down from the shower. Fisk stood under it, naked, unless the ankle monitor could be counted as an item of clothing, which it was not.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, remembering everything. Every single word. Every single gunshot. Every single moment.

'A magician never reveals his tricks, Mr. Fisk.'

So Chase was Prometheus. The man really was something, infiltrating the FBI like that. With him, the plan would be a little easier to execute.

He then remembered the explosions and the vehicle toppling. He remembered his panicked screams- 'Nadeem! Chase!'

He remembered using all his might to finally break the chain. His heart beat faster as he remembered the moment. The men with guns were killing the FBI. One of them barely dodged a grenade before crouching near him.

'Stay down', he remembered the FBI Agent saying before being killed.

He remembered the fear he felt, thinking this was the end. He had only thought of Vanessa and how he had let her down by losing his life.

'I am not someone you want to screw with.'

Then Chase had arrived to save him. But he also got an unexpected savior. The sharpshooting agent whose every shot was a headshot. Fisk had never thought that anyone could have that much accuracy except the Avenger called Hawkeye.

'Don't shoot. Don't shoot. We surrender.'

The two men had said that as they were trying to surrender to the agent.

'Do it. You want to and you like it.'

That's what Chase had said to him. And then he had shot them both. Fisk then remembered how he threw the empty gun and cartridge at two people's throats, killing them. Chase had also used a shuriken to kill a third.

'Convict! Don't move!'

The agent had said that to him after it was all over while pointing a gun at his face.

Next thing, he had been put in another vehicle and driven to a penthouse in a hotel. He had been lead out by Chase, Nadeem, the sharpshooter and other agents.

They had discussed the casualties amongst themselves. 2 agents were in surgery while 5 were dead. The sharpshooter kept referring to him as 'shitbag.'

His attorneys were there but the sharpshooter had prevented them from talking to him. Before being led away, he had told them that the Albanians were behind the attack and asked them to look after Vanessa.

He had then been put in the elevator and it had gone up. Nadeem had asked for a medic for himself. That's where Fisk had learnt that the sharpshooter was called 'Dex.'

But it didn't sound like a name. More like a shortened version of a name. But he was 'Dex' for now.

Nadeem and Chase had sent him to check in with the S.A.C.

He had then been led to the penthouse where the cuffs were taken out. Nadeem was angry at him for the death of the agents but Chase had calmed him down.

And now he was in the shower, reflecting all these events and what they meant.

"Mr. Fisk", he heard a familiar voice say.

Fisk new who this was.

"Mr. Chase", Fisk said.

Chase stood outside the bathroom, looking in the other direction.

"So I guess you're all right", Chase said.

"I am", Fisk said, "But I will teach those Albanians a lesson later. You were brave out there, trying to protect me. Thank you for that."

"I didn't protect you, Dex did", Chase said, "He has a special talent."

"The incredible accuracy", Fisk noted, impressed before coming to the point, "So you really are some kind of magician after all, Prometheus."

"Yes", Chase said, "Being an agent here is the best way for our partnership to continue. Matt is already suffering. He is missing right now while his home is in flames."

"That is good to know", Fisk said, "But to make him suffer, we need to attack the city he loves so much and then take it over, making him know that he failed to save it."

"Brilliant thinking there, Mr. Fisk", Chase noted, impressed, "Though I think his loved ones would be a good target too."

"They will", Fisk said, "But I think we should go after them at a certain time."

"I guess you're right", Chase said, "How do you plan on attacking the city?"

"Let's just say I have connections to the military", Fisk said, "Connections that you can track down."

"I can", Chase said, "Though I think the conversation has gone for too long."

Chase then went off into the camera room which had no one right now and switched the cameras back on.

* * *

Foggy had woken up after having a nightmare of Matt. His girlfriend, Marci Stahl had comforted him and advised him to see a therapist. He had refused, saying it wouldn't help him.

He had then got up to eat his pills and then picked up the phone too. What he saw on it made his blood run cold.

'Wilson Fisk out.'

What the hell?! The FBI was transporting him? Why?! Where?! Why the hell was the FBI even involved?

"No! No! No!"

* * *

"Lock Fisk up! Lock Fisk up! Lock Fisk up!"

That was what the people were chanting outside the penthouse when Matt arrived there. He could hear the anger in their voices. All of them knew what kind of person Fisk was.

He was a ruthless crime-lord who stopped at nothing to get what he wanted. So this riot outside the penthouse made sense. But it didn't make sense either.

Someone as high-profile as him should be locked up in a prison, never to see light of day again. So why the hell was he in a penthouse? That too a comfortable one! Fisk being here made no sense, so in a way, the riot taking place made no sense either.

"This doesn't make any sense", Matt voiced his thoughts.

"Of course it does. God is angry with you."

Matt's blood ran cold on hearing the voice. It was Fisk. Pacing calmly behind him. But Matt knew he was not real. But he still decided to engage him in a conversation nonetheless.

"What're you talking about?" Matt asked him.

"You don't think God knows you tried to kill yourself?" Fisk asked him.

"That has nothing to do with this", Matt protested.

"Don't delude yourself, Matthew."

Matt now got angrier on hearing this voice.

"Chase!" he said angrily.

"You know you wanted to kill yourself that night", Chase said, "And you almost did."

"God restored your hearing just in time to hear my name chanted by the crowds", Fisk said to him, "Just in time to learn, I won, you lost. Does that sound like God's forgiveness?"

After a sigh, Matt said, "No. It sounds like…. Hell."

"I told everyone that day, Matthew", Chase said, ""Burning now I bring you Hell." And now I'm bringing it. I'm wreaking my vengeance."

"Lock Fisk up! Lock Fisk up!"

Matt realized both of them were gone now.

* * *

Karen was making her way to the penthouse with Oliver, Slade and Roy.

"So the most ruthless crime-lord of New York has been released", Oliver said.

"Our tax dollars at work", Karen quipped.

"I wonder how high the FBI was when they decided to do this", Roy said in disgust.

"They must be stupid if they thought they could hide this from the public", Slade said, "And they must be a deluded lot if they think a man like him will help them."

"Desperate times, desperate measures must be their motto", Oliver said in disgust, "But this is not what they should do."

As they neared the place, they did not notice Matt walking out of there due to the riots and their conversation.

"Who's in charge here?" Karen asked a female cop.

"That's the genius who let him out", the cop told her, gesturing to an India FBI Agent, "Agent Nadeem."

"Thanks", Karen said gratefully and then walked towards Nadeem with Oliver, Slade and Roy flanking her.

"Agent Nadeem", she said but he gestured her to wait as he was on a call. After he was finished, Karen said, "Hi. Karen Page of the New York Bulletin."

"I'm not authorized to speak to the press", Nadeem said, "You need to find Special Agent in Charge Hattley. And who are these 3?"

"They are with me", Karen said, "And it is N-A-D-E-E-M right? And you're the agent who released Wilson Fisk?"

"Fisk has not been released", Nadeem protested, "That's fake news."

"Really?" Oliver asked, "Because this doesn't look like a prison."

"Fisk must be enjoying all the luxuries of life here", Roy said.

"And you're calling it fake news", Slade said.

"He's a cooperating witness", Nadeem said, "But he's still a prisoner. He is here for reasons I cannot disclose and in spite of this place looking luxurious, he is not getting much of it."

"This is a $20 million penthouse", Karen pointed out.

"Seized by the US Government from some Wall Street Prick convicted of fraud", Nadeem said.

"So he must be getting some really nice dinner", Oliver quipped, angering Nadeem.

"Is it the filet mignon or the line-caught halibut?" Karen asked.

"Press area's over there", Nadeem said, gesturing to an area before turning to the three men with her, "And if you're common folk, get out of here."

As he started walking away, Karen said, "One RICO count carries a 20-year sentence. Fisk was convicted on five. Want to explain to me how this is justice?"

"It's not", Slade said, "It is bullshit!"

"Bullshit, huh?" Nadeem said angrily as he walked closer before turning to Page, "Jennings, Garcia, Foster, Leighton, Torres. They lost their lives and they were good agents, good people. If not for my partner and Agent Poindexter, I would be dead too. Bullshit that, eyepatch guy. Why don't you write about that, Miss Page?"

He then angrily walked away.

"He is not at fault", Oliver said with a slightly guilty sigh, "He seems like a good man. Perhaps he truly believes Fisk will help the FBI."

"You're right", Roy said, "But I think if Fisk is helping them, he's got an agenda."

"And this agent is just their scapegoat", Slade said.

* * *

Matt walked ahead and realized a truck belonging to the hotel stood near the back door.

An employee got out of the truck, carrying some luggage. He typed in the 4-digit code and entered. Matt heard the buttons being pressed and memorized the code, "9-1-7-4."

He then realized no one was paying attention to him so he snuck into the still open truck. Inside it, many uniforms worn by the hotel employees were kept. Matt took one of them and worn it while taking off his glasses. He took out some luggage too.

Carrying it, he gave the FBI Agent near the door a friendly smile. He then typed the correct code- 9-1-7-4. As the door opened, he walked in, carrying the luggage with him, saying "Thanks" to the agent who closed the door behind him.

As he walked in, one of the employees on a ladder asked him, "Can you please hand me one of those BNCs?"

Matt picked it up and gave it to him while he said, "Thanks."

Matt then took off the jacket of the hotel staff he was wearing and walked into the main area of the hotel. People around him were going around, talking to each other, not paying attention to their surroundings that much.

Matt picked up a pamphlet and walked around. He heard a man arguing with the staff about his reservations.

He suddenly heard an FBI Agent walking in.

Surveying the area, he said, "North Entrance is green. West Entrance is green. Service Area is green. Lobby is green."

He then walked away, sensing no threat. Matt continued walking.

"So you're inside."

Matt gave an annoyed sigh at the voice.

"Now what?" Fisk asked him.

"Why would they let you out?" Matt muttered.

"Does it matter?" Fisk asked, "The real question is, when you find me, what are you prepared to do?"

"See, if the FBI are protecting you, that means you cut a deal", Matt said as he walked around.

"Yes, he did, Matthew", Adrian said, making Matt even more annoyed, "He is useful to this city like that."

"With everything I know about crime in this city, the FBI will be eating out of my hand", Fisk said.

"You'll manipulate them", Matt said.

"You honestly think you know that?" Chase asked with a smirk.

"I know him", Matt said.

"Maybe prison has changed me", Fisk said, making Matt laugh humorlessly.

"Maybe right this moment, I am giving the FBI information that will save lives", Fisk said, "While you're here doing what? Whatever this is."

"Isn't that something, Matthew?" Chase asked him.

"If I became more valuable to this city than you ever were", Fisk said.

Matt ignored both of them and walked downstairs.

* * *

Karen was now walking back to her own home with the Earth-1 trio.

"I know this might be a long shot", Roy said, "But what if Fisk being out has something to do with Chase?"

"What?" Oliver asked.

"You never know, kid", Slade said.

"Maybe", Karen said, "But if Chase had anything to do with it, I think Fisk would not be in any kind of custody."

"I don't know if Chase is involved or not", Oliver said, "But if he is, there is a point to everything he does. Maybe Fisk is here because Chase wants it."

"Or maybe Fisk himself wants it", Karen said.

"Still", Slade said, "The possibilities can't be ruled out."

"Chase is very smart", Roy said, "He might have planned something."

"Fisk is smart too", Karen said.

"Maybe Chase tracked down Fisk and they made an alliance", Oliver spoke the worst case scenario, "And this is a part of their plan."

"So what are we going to do then?" Karen asked.

At that moment, the four stopped at the place where the truck was. Another employee was going in. Oliver observed his fingers from a distance and memorized the code, "9-1-7-4."

"Go home, Karen", Oliver said to her, "There is something we need to do here."

"All right", Karen said, "If you find out something, tell me."

As she walked off, Oliver gestured to the truck and said, "I memorized the code and the truck is empty. No one's watching."

"Always a good thing, kid, always a good thing", Slade said as the three moved into the truck and changed into the uniforms of hotel employees. Picking up some luggage, they walked out.

Oliver typed in the correct code- 9-1-7-4. As the door opened, the three walked in while the FBI Agent closed it behind them.

They walked through the hallway and entered the main hall after taking off the hotel jackets. They spotted the FBI Agent walking around.

"Looking for threats I guess", Roy said.

"With Fisk out here, some people would probably want to kill him", Oliver said.

"Well, let's see if we can find out something", Slade said and the three started walking around.

* * *

Matt was sitting in the café after ordering a coffee. He was listening to conversations all around him, thinking he might get something.

"It's got the best view", Fisk's voice said from beside him.

With a sigh, Matt said, "You should be rotting in a cell."

"So you're gonna bring me back to prison?" Fisk asked, "But you know that won't work. There's only one way to stop me, but you're not gonna do it."

"Are you sure about that?" Matt asked as he put a toothpick in his mouth.

"Ohh", Chase said from his other side, "Are you implying what I think you are? So you no longer care about moral compass? Wow, never thought you could be that corrupted."

"In a way you're my accomplice", Fisk said, "Everything that's happened since you refused to kill me is on you. The bodies that I've stacked up. The ones to come."

"Perhaps one of us", Chase said with a smirk, "In that case, I am really looking forward to seeing your true colors, Matthew."

Matt then heard Fisk's lawyer, Benjamin Donovan, walk behind him, talking to someone on the phone.

"You can follow him right to me", Fisk said, "You know you want to."

"Let's see what you do when you are lead to your nemesis", Chase said.

Matt took the toothpick out of his mouth and started walking to where Donovan was walking.

"May I see your room key, sir?" an agent asked him.

"Yeah, I got it", Matt said as he put a hand to his pocket.

"No, I need to see it", the agent insisted. That was not something Matt had expected. He did not know that this agent was none other than Benjamin Poindexter.

"Oh sure", Matt said as he pretended to search for it.

"You can take him", Fisk said, "Grab his gun. And come for me. I am caged up. Unarmed."

"And then we will see how much morality is left in you", Chase said.

"Sir", Dex asked.

"They gave me like three of them", Matt said as he searched more while Dex gently fingered his gun, thinking this man was a threat.

"But you won't", Fisk said, "You can't kill me. You can't even kill yourself."

"You know what?" Matt said to Dex, "I must have left it in my car."

"Then I'm afraid I can't let you in", Dex said.

"Sure", Matt said, "I'll be right back."

He then walked away while Dex continued to eye him with suspicion.

"It looks like you can't kill anyone after all", Chase taunted him, "Disappointing."

* * *

Oliver, Slade and Roy arrived near the café as Matt walked off to another direction. Due to the many people and the fact that he was wearing a cap, the three failed to spot him.

They looked at a door guarded by an FBI Agent who stood there stiffly.

"I think coming here was a waste of time", Roy said.

"Don't be hasty, Harper", Slade said.

"Slade's right", Oliver said, "There might be a chance to find something."

"We can't go to Fisk", Roy said, "That agent won't let us."

"And right now, we don't have any means to carry out theatrics", Slade said.

"So we have to keep looking around", Oliver said, "Be aware of our surroundings."

The three continued to look around, trying to find any clue.

* * *

"Bon appetit, asshole", Agent Lim said to Fisk later as he put a tray in front of him. He walked away while Dex stood guard there. Chase was pacing around too.

Fisk looked at his food and after a deep breath spoke, "Its Special Agent Poindexter, isn't it?"

Dex turned his head towards him.

"You and Special Agent Chase saved my life last night", Fisk said gratefully.

"Yeah, we all make mistakes", Dex said.

"It's not a mistake if he helps us be 10 steps ahead of all the crime organizations", Chase said.

"I'm sorry for the loss of your fellow agents", Fisk said regretfully, "Losing them to protect someone like me must be difficult for their families and loved ones. I'd offer my condolences but I imagine it'd bring them greater comfort to hate me. Unless you feel otherwise. That my words bring any positive effect. If so, please share that, from what I witnessed, they were incredibly brave."

"Might wanna eat faster, convict", Dex said, trying to ignore Fisk's words, "Meal's over in five."

"I owe those fallen agents a debt I can never repay", Fisk said, "But I also owe the two of you. I've known extraordinary people. But I've never seen a talent such as yours. May I ask where you acquired such a skill?"

"Okay", Dex said as he walked over to him, "You're done."

He made to take the tray away but Chase firmly grabbed his hand.

"Special Agent Poindexter", he said, "The man complimented you. So I think taking away his food is not really a good way to say 'Thanks.'"

Dex removed his hand as Chase said, "Be nice to those who are nice to you. But the rest of the world does not deserve any such kindness."

Dex left the room, a little unnerved by Chase's words.

"Brilliant, Agent Chase", Fisk said, "Lot of resources you must have gotten to do such a thing."

"Not really", Chase said, "But I'm getting them."

The person watching the camera was confused by this conversation totally.

* * *

"I saved him because it was my job", Dex later said to Dr. Myman, "What more do you want me to say, Doc?"

"Forget Fisk", Myman said, "Talk to me about the ambush."

With a sigh, Dex asked, "What about it?"

"Oh come on, Poindexter", Myman said, "We both know how this works. We have to talk so I can clear you for duty. It is what it is."

After a deep breath, Dex said, "I lost friends today."

"And you used lethal force against multiple subjects", Myman said.

"Yeah."

"And you're here on duty, even though you should be on administrative leave", Myman pointed out.

"I understand you're trying to do your job", Dex said with a hint of anger in his voice, "But if I was wearing a mask, the press would be calling me a hero. Instead, I'm sitting here with you trying to justify protecting myself."

"I am not the enemy. I'm just trying to", Myman paused for a minute, "Look, forget the psych bullshit for a minute. Just tell me, for real, how are you?"

"It's hard. It's really hard", Dex said after a sigh.

"This isn't the first time you've used lethal force", Myman reminded him.

"I'm FBI Swat, Doc", Dex pointed out with a smirk, "And by the way, the other agent with me, Adrian Chase, he also used lethal force to defend himself. And what do you think a sniper does?"

"Well, the thing is Dex, can I call you Dex?"

When he didn't respond, Myman continued, "The thing is, events like this exact a toll. Repeating traumatic experiences compound that toll, creating a pressure."

"Until one day, I go postal? Yeah, I get it", Dex interrupted.

"The point is, you have to process this stuff", Myman said.

"I process it", Dex said.

"You have a support system?" Myman asked.

"Well, I think she'd rather be called Julie", Dex said.

"Oh", the doctor realized what this Julie was in his life, "Tell me how does that work?"

"She's a bartender", Dex said after a sigh, "Professional listener, like you. She probably gets paid more."

Both Myman and Dex chuckled a little at that.

"Tell me about her", Myman said.

"We get dinner most nights", Dex said, "Today's Tuesday? It's pizza night. Julie gets broccoli with sausage, extra cheese. I tell her about my day. The good, the bad. I know it's not healthy to hold this stuff in, so I talk to her. I tell her everything. And-and she doesn't judge me or blame me. She's just there for me."

"She sounds like a good one", Myman commented.

Dex nodded with a smile and said, "Yeah. She is."

Myman looked at him and with a smile said, "All right. You are clear for duty."

He then signed some papers and said, "But I want you checking with me daily for a while? Okay."

"Yes sir", Dex said as he shook the doctor's hand.

"You, uh, you go see your girl", Myman said, "It'll do you good."

Dex nodded with a smile, picked up his coat and walked out.

* * *

Benjamin Donovan sat in his car, preparing to drive. Suddenly, a rope wrapped around his throat while the light was switched off.

"Why did Fisk flip on the Albanians?" the man sitting behind him asked.

It was Matt, wearing his black suit again.

"I don't know what you're talking about", Donovan said, "You've got the wrong person."

The rope around him tightened and he said, "Fisk hated prison. The FBI got him out."

"He could have turned on anyone. Why the Albanians?" Matt asked him.

"I'm just a lawyer", Donovan protested.

"What is Fisk really getting out of this? The Albanians' territory?" Matt asked.

"No."

"Is it money?"

"No."

"Why don't you let me know when you wanna breathe?" Matt said as he tightened the rope while Donovan struggled to breathe.

"Fisk's woman", Donovan suddenly blurted out, "The feds will drop all charges against her."

"No", Matt said, not believing him.

"I swear! He's doing it all for her", Donovan stated.

"And where is Vanessa?" Matt asked, realizing Donovan wasn't lying.

At that moment, Matt heard some heartbeats and approaching footsteps. Probably agents. He let Donovan go, opened the door and ran out while Donovan screamed, "Help! Help!"

Matt crouched between the cars and kept running. He then hid behind a pillar as an agent said to the others via earpiece, "There's an unidentified assailant in the parking garage. Consider him armed and dangerous."

One of the agents was on the other side of the pillar behind which Matt was hidden. He looked around on one side and started moving towards the other. That moment, Matt grabbed him from behind and punched him before putting him in a chokehold.

"Anyone got a visual on him?" an agent said over the earpiece nearby as Matt crouched down behind a car while the agent passed out in his grip.

Matt slowly started sneaking up on another agent. As soon as the agent looked back, Matt quietly rolled away and hid underneath a car.

That agent walked past the car. Matt then got up and grabbed him from behind before slamming his head on a pillar stuck to a wall, knocking him out. He then dragged the unconscious agent and hid on the other side of the pillar while a third one looked for him.

The agent tried to move but Matt elbowed him out. He then opened an exit door but heard many FBI Agents on the other side so he closed it and hid behind another pillar before crouching down to between it and a car, avoiding being spotted.

"We need backup on parking level three", an agent said, "Repeat. We need backup on parking level three."

* * *

The agent in the main area who was looking around for threats heard that message via earpiece and started walking to the parking area. Oliver, Slade and Roy noticed him and discreetly followed.

* * *

Matt got up and was about to run when an FBI Agent pointed a gun on his face.

"They have families, asshole", he said.

"Listen", Matt said, "I'm not here to-"

Matt suddenly grabbed both his hands and tried to snatch his gun. The agent managed to slam him on a car as other nearby agents arrived. The agent tried to punch Matt but he blocked, grabbed him by the back of the collar and slammed him on the car before punching him out.

Three other agents fired at him but he rolled away and hid between cars.

"Come out with your hands up", one of them said, "Now."

As they passed the cars, Matt jumped between two of them and grabbing the gun of the one on the back, he punched him and kicked the one in the front before moving the back one's hand to hit the front one with his gun.

The third one fired but Matt dodged before pushing the agent whose hand he had grabbed away and snatching his gun which he threw on the third one's face, making him hold his nose and cry out in pain.

Matt then grabbed his gun hand and twisted it behind his back before kicking him down. The one whose face he had smacked with another agent's gun leapt onto him and slammed him to the ground.

He tried to punch but Matt blocked and slammed his head on the car before throwing him away. As another got up, Matt punched him out. The first one got up and moved towards him but Matt swept his feet from under him and he was down. He tried to get up but Matt kicked him on the face and he was down.

As he tried to get up, the one whose gun he had snatched grabbed him and punched him on the chest before getting a punch on the jaw which knocked him down.

"Stay down, man", Matt said.

But he got up again and tried to punch. Matt blocked and punched him down again. He panted and started walking away.

But the agent was persistent and grabbed his leg. Now Matt was angered.

"That's it", Fisk said, "Let the Devil out."

"Do it, Matthew", Chase said, "Give in to your inner darkness."

Matt lifted up the agent by the back of his coat and punched him thrice before throwing him down. He then lifted him by the collar and punched him four times before panting in exhaustion.

"Felt good, didn't it?" Fisk asked, "Too bad you still can't get at me. Not with the FBI protecting me."

"But you can always take it out on someone, like this agent here", Chase taunted him.

"I'm going to kill everyone you love and there's nothing you can do about it", Fisk taunted.

"And this city you love so much will fall", Chase taunted.

And then they were gone.

Matt slowly got up and walked out.

* * *

The agent from the main area was still on his way to the parking area when he felt someone behind him. He brandished his gun and turned but Oliver grabbed his gun hand and elbowed him out.

"Nice job, kid", Slade commented as the three ran to the parking area.

They saw six agents, lying unconscious.

"Oh boy!" Roy said, "Whoever did this is gone."

"You think it was Matt?" Slade asked Oliver.

"Maybe", Oliver said, "Perhaps he was here to gather info, just like us."

"Well, I hope he had better luck than us in that case", Slade said.

"I wish we had gotten here earlier", Oliver said, "Let's go."

The three then walked away from there.

* * *

Matt stood in front of the basin and washed his hand, soaked with the blood of that last agent. Matt now felt guilty for taking out his anger on that man who was just doing his job.

"Well, at least you're upright", Maggie quipped as she walked over to him.

Matt turned off the tap and tilted his head towards her, a grim expression on his face.

With a sigh, she asked, "Do I even wanna know?"

"Do you believe people can change?" Matt asked her.

"I'm still holding out hope", she said.

"I don't think we can", Matt said, "Not really. I think we come into this world who we are. And maybe we get a little nicer. Or a little angrier. But we can't change our fundamental nature."

"Well, you'd actually have to try to know", Maggie said as she walked over to a shelf.

"I was talking about Wilson Fisk", Matt corrected her.

Maggie turned around holding a jar, a surprised look on her face, "So your hearing's really back then?"

As Matt turned around, she said, "Well, what do you know? Maybe the boss did hear my prayers."

"Yeah, or my curses", Matt quipped.

"Please don't start with Job again", Maggie said as she lifted a cloth and dipped it in a bowl of clean water on a table.

"You gotta admit it's interesting, though, isn't it?" Matt asked as he walked over to her and put a towel on his shoulder, "I finally get my full hearing back, and the first thing I hear is that Wilson Fisk is out of prison."

"So you're suggesting that God set a dangerous mobster free just to spite you?" Maggie asked as she spread the cloth on the table.

"Nah", Matt said, "Probably just a coincidence."

She then started cleaning the wounds on Matt's knuckles with cotton dipped in another bowl of clean water and said, "Because that would be incredible narcissistic."

"Fisk claims to be helping the FBI", Matt said with his hands on the spread out cloth as Maggie continued cleaning the wounds, "But they don't know him like I do."

"Right", Maggie said, "And according to you, people can't change."

Matt gave a light chuckle and said, "Because he's claiming to have changed over a woman."

"I see", Maggie said, "Well, if there's anything that can redeem a lost soul, love would have to top the list."

"Oh, come on?" Matt said in an annoyed tone, "With me, it's different. But a monster like Fisk?"

"You're talking to a nun, kiddo", Maggie said, "So love and redemption are pretty much our sales pitch."

"You know", Matt said, "The man who injured me before I was brought here. He is a monster too. And he had a wife whom he loved. But when she tried to help him redeem himself, he murdered her."

On hearing that, Maggie looked at him in shock.

"So I'm not buying", he told her.

"What are you gonna do then?" she asked.

"Maybe I'll stop Fisk", Matt said, "And that other man too. For good this time."

Looking at him in concern, Maggie said, "Well, just be careful that you don't become the monster."

* * *

Dex sat in his car. Behind the car, a woman came out of the bar she worked in. She locked it up and started walking towards his car. But then she walked past it and towards a pizza place.

She was Julie. Dex watched her from within his car. She walked in to the pizza place. Dex picked up binoculars and watched her. She laughed and talked with the owner of the pizza place. Seeing that, Dex laughed too.

Julie picked up her pizza and ate it. It had broccoli with sausage and extra cheese. Dex had that pizza with him too, having bought it from there earlier. He picked it up and started eating it too. It had broccoli with sausage and extra cheese.

Dex now felt happy, eating pizza with Julie whom he loved so much. She was the love of his life. His North Star. And he was enjoying his pizza with her, just like he had told his doctor.

* * *

Foggy sat in a bar, drinking heavily. He was angry and depressed right now. Earlier that day, he had approached Blake Tower, thinking he could help in getting Fisk back in prison.

But Tower did not want to go against the wishes of the FBI and wanted to get re-elected so he had refused. So now Foggy was here in the bar, angry at him.

He saw a pamphlet nearby which said to re-elect Tower as District Attorney. Foggy angrily crushed it in his fists and threw it away.

He then continued drinking.

"Foggy", a voice whispered behind him.

He then turned and looked at the one who had called him out.

What the hell? How was that possible? No, it couldn't be real. He was hallucinating.

"This isn't real", he said, not showing any sign of shock or surprise.

"It's real", Matt said to him with a nod.

Now Foggy ended up smiling happily. It was real! Matt was alive! He was back!

He jumped up from his seat and hugged Matt, who hugged him back.

"Hey Foggy", Matt said as he patted his back.

"How? Where?" Foggy said incoherently in his drunken state, "Your apartment. You went missing. We all thought you were dead."

He let go and looked at Matt with happiness.

"I'm sorry", Matt said.

"Does Karen know you're back yet?" Foggy asked.

"Take a seat", Matt said as he put a hand on Foggy's shoulder.

As they both sat, Matt said, "I'm-I'm not back."

"Well, I'm 75% sure I'm not hallucinating", Foggy joked, thinking Matt was trying to mess with him.

"I'm, uh, not back", Matt said again, "Matt Murdock isn't gonna be a part of me anymore. Um, I'm leaving him behind."

"What?" Foggy asked, confused.

"The only reason I'm here is to warn you that Fisk is out and that you're both in danger", Matt said, "And there is another enemy of mine out for me. He is the one who bombed my apartment. He will find you. So go into hiding."

"Dude-"

"I've had a rough time recently, Foggy", Matt said, "Questioning a lot of- the point of it all. And last night, everything became clear. I'm going after them, Foggy, and I'm going to find a way to bring them both down. But I can only do that if I know that you and Karen are safe. So please, go into hiding."

"Dude", Foggy said, "Slow down. I'm still processing the fact that you're even, like, sitting here."

"I know you're gonna want to get involved", Matt said, "You and Karen will try and fight Fisk and even my attacker in some way. I'm telling you, I need you to stay out of it and leave it to me."

"No", Foggy said in a confused expression.

"No?"

"No", Foggy repeated firmly, this time a hint of anger in his voice, "You don't get to show up like this and say something like that and expect me to be cool with it. You're my best friend, asshole."

"See, I was wrong to become your friend, Foggy", Matt said, stunning him into silence, "I-I put you in danger, and it was selfish of me. I can't change the past but I can stop making the same mistake."

With a sigh, Matt started getting up and said while hiding his emotions, "We're done buddy. It's uh, it's over."

As he started walking away, Foggy said angrily, "There's something seriously wrong with you."

"Yeah, I know", Matt said as he walked away, "Stay clear of Fisk and my attacker. Tell Karen to do the same. And I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell her that you saw me."

"Do you even hear yourself right now?" Foggy asked in stunned shock.

"Goodbye, Foggy", Matt said as he walked away.

"Matt! Matt!" Foggy called out but got no response as Matt walked out and disappeared.

* * *

Matt walked out of the bar. He then stopped and let out a very sad sigh. He might have talked emotionlessly with Foggy but he was crying inside over it.

But he had another purpose too. He took out a wallet from his pocket. It was not his, but Foggy's. He had swiped it off him while they were talking.

He ran his fingers over Foggy's cards. His identity card and bank number were all there. Matt then decided it was time for his next move.

* * *

"Was it him?" Fisk asked Donovan after listening to him narrate the incident.

"He took out 6 feds", Donovan said, "He wasn't in a red suit, but yeah, it was him."

Fisk took a deep breath and walked towards the window. Looking out at the city, he said, "So the Devil is back."

Outside the window, Prometheus stood, hanging on the side. He heard that and said, "So I guess you're back in the game, Mr. Murdock."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn it! Oliver, Slade and Roy have barely missed Matt thrice now. I am going to keep them separated a little longer.
> 
> Fisk and Chase have a really smart way of conversing with each other, don't they?
> 
> Poor Matt, having hallucinations of both the psychopaths, egging him on to fulfill his dark desires. Poor Foggy too, being cut off by his best friend like that.
> 
> Dex has an interesting way of spending time with his 'girlfriend.'
> 
> I think the words 'military' and 'connections' are a hint of something else entirely.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	9. Blindsided

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen investigate more about the Fisk case as Matt tries to find out more clues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.

Matt stood in front of his apartment. The police tape was all around and he could still smell some minor scent from his dried blood. He ducked under the tape and went inside.

He used his senses to feel things around him. He knew his furniture was in splinters while his couch had been burnt to ash. But fortunately, the stuff inside his wardrobe was still fine.

He took off his shirt and then took out a white, formal one from the wardrobe wearing it instead. He then out a black tie on his neck and changed his pants too. Finally, he wore his black coat.

And now, he looked every bit like the lawyer he was. Buttoning his coat, he walked out of the apartment, ducking under the police tape again.

He went out into the street, listening to vehicles, trying to hear a cab, which he could recognize as its size and sound were different from other vehicles. Finally, he heard one. He raised his hand and whistled.

The cab stopped. Matt opened the back door and sat on the back seat of the cab.

"Oh, these mornings are getting colder and colder", the driver commented, "Piece of crap can't keep up for nothing. Where off to, boss?"

* * *

"Matt shows up, alive! Then tells me I'm never gonna see him again. Only I, Foggy Nelson, can be ghosted by a ghost", Foggy ranted to Marci as he paced around.

Foggy then checked the door as Marci said, "It's locked. Just like it was the last time you checked it."

"We need to get another dead bolt installed", Foggy said as he walked back, "A single dead-bolt and a measly chain? Might as well be a beaded curtain."

"Foggy, relax", Marci said as she walked up to him.

"Relax?" Foggy asked incredulously as he paced faster, "Are you even listening to me? Wilson Fisk wants my scalp and for all we know, he could want yours too. It's not like you've done him any favors. And of course Matt wants me to stick to the sidelines while he deals with Fisk. Only Matt Murdock is fit for real action. Just because I'm not-", he noticed her staring at him, "What?"

"Nothing", she said as he sighed and looking out of the window said, "I don't even know what I'm saying anymore."

"Foggy, breathe", she said as she massaged his back.

"Matt was gone, now he's back, saying he was attacked by some mystery man. Fisk is out, and I have no idea where that leaves me", Foggy ranted again.

"Screw the sidelines, we go on the offense", Marci said.

"Offense? With Fisk and some mystery man?" Foggy asked, "Fisk has the law and the FBI on his side while this mystery man is just mysterious. And it's not like we've heard a statement from the DA condemning Fisk's release. No, no, nothing to jeopardize Blake Tower's re-election. God forbid he grow a pair."

Marci made a weird expression at that and said, "Oh, that could work."

"Blake Tower growing a pair? Not gonna happen", Foggy said.

"No, think about it", Marci said, "The best way to protect yourself from Fisk and whoever this mystery man is to make noise, to be out in the open."

"Oh, like a public execution", Foggy said.

"Like a public call to action", Marci corrected him, "If Blake Tower doesn't do anything to stop Fisk, then run against him for District Attorney", she chuckled and continued, "If you're already a target, you might as well be the first person to take a swing."

Looking at his incredulous expression, she touched his face and said, "No, I'm serious. The more public, the more you're protected."

"There's no way I can win", Foggy said.

"Of course not."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence", he said sarcastically, "Anyway, we're light years past the deadline."

"Then run as write-in", she said, "You base your candidacy on a single issue. Putting Wilson Fisk back behind bars. You'd back a few votes. Not enough to win, but you'd get the issue out there. Plus, you'd make a new friend in the NYPD, which is not a bad thing for a defense attorney. Or, you could keep checking the locks."

After a few moments of silence, Foggy said sincerely, "I won't let anything happen to you."

"Oh baby", she said with a sigh as she hugged him, "Then we better start working on that swing. After coffee."

She gave him a kiss and said, "You're buying."

She then walked off to get her coat. Foggy stood still for a few moments before realizing his pockets were empty.

He then asked out loud, "Have you seen my wallet?"

* * *

Matt held Foggy's card in his hand. Using his fingers, he read the number.

"You paying with card?" the driver asked, "Because you know, cash is better?"

Matt handed him a lot of cash, more than what was required.

"Wait for me", Matt said, revealing why he gave him extra money.

"Yeah", the driver said, "I could do that."

Matt walked out of the cab and into Ryker's Island which was a penal facility.

"Hi", he said to the guard at the reception, "Good morning."

"Purpose for your visit?" the guard asked.

"I have an appointment with my client", Matt said, "I called earlier today. I should be on the visitor's list."

"ID", the guard demanded.

Matt pretended to look for it and finally said, "I can't find my wallet. Did I leave it at home, or drop it in the cab-"

"Without picture ID, I can't-"

"Just give me one second-"

"Sir, please step aside while-"

"Here", Matt said as he handed the guard a card, "This is my New York Bar Number. Now this is not picture ID, I know, but it did take me 7 years and cost me $300,000 in student loans", he chuckled, "Does it, uh, buy me anything?"

The guard compared the number to the one he had written in the appointment list in front of the name.

"Name?" he asked Matt, just to make sure.

"Nelson. Franklin Nelson."

* * *

Later, Matt sat in the visitors' area, waiting for the one he needed to meet.

The guards led a young prisoner out to meet him.

"Matt!" he said happily as he walked towards him, "I thought Foggy-"

"What's up, Michael?" Matt asked as he got up.

The two shared a hug as Matt said, "It's good to see you."

"It's good to see you too, even if it is in this shithole", Michael said as they broke the hug and sat down,

Matt said, "I'm sure you're wondering-"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said shithole", Michael said, "I'm trying not to curse. What's the point of me getting out of here with a degree in psychology, top of my class if I still swear like a goddamn sailor?"

Matt patted him on the shoulder proudly and pointed out, "Did it again."

"Well sorry", he said as he did a prayer gesture, "Saint Matthew."

"I'm no Saint", Matt said.

"You and Foggy got 16 years knocked off my sentence", Michael said gratefully, "If that's not divine intervention, huh?"

The two chuckled and Michael asked, "Where is Foggy? I've never seen you two apart."

"We're uh", Matt said, "We're not working together anymore."

"Aw ma, that sucks", Michael said sadly.

"Yeah", Matt said before asking, "Listen, I don't want anyone, not even Foggy to know, that I was here."

After a moment, Michael said, "I can do that."

"Appreciate it", Matt said.

"So what's the big mystery?" Michael asked.

"Uh, look", Matt said, "So you, um, used to work with the Albanians, right?"

"A long time ago", Michael said, "Low level stuff. Mostly just running."

"But they're offering you protection in here?" Matt asked.

With a chuckle, Michael asked, "What do you want with the Albanians?"

"I want an introduction", Matt said.

"If somebody needs a defense lawyer, I'll make sure to pass your name along", Michael said, "Glowing review. But you know, folks in here, they're murdering bastards."

"I want an introduction to Vic Jusufi", Matt said suddenly, stunning Michael.

"Nobody gets in with Vic", he said.

"You can't make it happen?" Matt asked.

Michael looked around to make sure no one was watching while Matt also used his senses.

"What do you want with him, anyway?" Michael asked.

Softly, Matt said, "Wilson Fisk could have turned on any criminal organization. I want to know why the Albanians. What did they have on Fisk?"

"Just, uh", Michael said nervously as he looked around, "Let this go."

"No, I can't do it", Matt said, "Fisk stays out, innocent people die."

"I don't know shit", Michael said.

"Michael", Matt begged, "You can help me."

"No."

"Come on."

"You're gonna get me killed", Michael said. He then clenched his fist, which Matt heard. Suddenly, he stood up and punched Matt, which was enough to get attention.

"Get this guy away from me!" he yelled, "I don't know him! Get him away! Get him away!"

The guards grabbed Michael as Matt wiped some blood from his lip.

"I said nothing!" Michael said to another prisoner as he was dragged away, "On my mother! On my mother!"

"Sir?" a guard asked Matt.

"It's all right", Matt waved him off as he got up, "Just a misunderstanding."

"Mr. Nelson", the guard said, "You need to be checked out by a nurse."

"Its fine", Matt said, "I'm fine."

"Then you can say that on the incident report", the guard said, "Liability reasons. Can't let you leave until you sign one."

After a moment of silence, Matt said, "Yeah, all right."

"Follow me", the guard said.

The guard led Matt away who sensed around for any danger. One of the prisoners kept staring at him.

Matt was then led deeper into the facility by the guard. Inside, some prisoners were being checked. The guard led him through another door which closed behind them.

He was finally in the nurse's room where the guard said, "Wait in here. The nurse should be by."

"Thanks", Matt said as the guard walked away.

Matt paced around, ready to face any danger if there was one.

* * *

In her office, Karen was working on the Fisk Case with some help from Oliver, Slade and Roy when there was a knock on the door and Foggy walked in.

He was startled to see the Earth-1 trio with her.

"Who are these guys?" Foggy asked.

"Uh, they are-"

"Oliver Queen", Oliver said as he held out his hand.

"Oliver?" Foggy thought aloud as he shook it, "Matt mentioned you once. I am Foggy Nelson."

"He's told me a lot about you too", Oliver said.

"And who are you two?" Foggy asked the other two.

"Slade Wilson."

"Roy Harper."

"So, uh, you're all Matt's friends?" he asked.

"Yes", Oliver said, "And we know he's Daredevil. We're trying to find him."

"What?" Foggy asked, "So you know about his secret and what happened in his house?"

"Yes", Oliver said, "We know. And we're here to help."

"How do you know him anyway?" he asked them.

"Well, it's complicated", Roy said.

"But we have to uncomplicated it, I guess", Slade said.

The three, with some help from Karen, managed to tell Foggy a short version of the story. Like Karen, Foggy was stunned too.

"Other Earths?" he said incredulously.

"Believe it or not, it's true", Oliver said, "And Adrian Chase from our Earth is here, out for Matt's blood."

"So Adrian is the mystery man who attacked him?" Foggy asked.

"Yes, he is", Slade said.

"Oh, now everything makes sense", Foggy muttered.

"What do you mean?" Karen asked.

"Well, uh", Foggy said, "Uh, I promised I would never lie for Matt again. Not to you."

He breathed deeply but Karen realized what he was trying to say, "Matt's alive."

"He's alive?" Oliver asked Foggy, "Where is he?"

"I-I don't know", Foggy said.

"Why? Why didn't he reach out to us?" Karen said.

"It wasn't Matt that I saw", Foggy said suddenly, confusing the four, "I mean- it was Matt, all five feet ten inches of him, but the way he spoke to me, something was different."

"Well, that's nothing new", Karen said, "There's always something missing with Matt."

"What did he say?" Oliver asked.

"He said he's left Matt Murdock behind", Foggy said, stunning everyone, "He's going to take on Fisk and Adrian alone, and then he asked me to stay out of it."

"What the hell is wrong with him?" Slade muttered.

"I think I know", Oliver said, making the others turn to him, "It's the same thing that happened to me once. I wanted to leave everything behind once and just be a vigilante, using my darkness for things. Matt feels like that because of what happened recently. But we have to be there for him."

"So we can help him?" Roy asked.

"I hope so", Oliver said.

"But he looked like he made his choice", Foggy said.

"Well, he hasn't seen me here yet", Oliver said.

* * *

Matt sat in the nurse's room, waiting for the report. The door buzzed and he arrived with a file in his hand as Matt stood up.

"Sorry again for the wait", he apologized before holding Matt's face and turning it both sides to check if there were any dislocations before replying, "But good news. It's not dislocated."

"Great", Matt said as the nurse went to a table to sign the file, "So I can go?"

"Honestly, this paperwork is a waste of time", the nurse said, "It will probably end up in a file somewhere."

He chuckled and took out a pupilometer, "I am now going to check your pupils to make sure you're not concussed."

He then switched it on and asked, "Just look up for me?"

Matt almost panicked as his blindness being exposed would ruin whatever chance he had. But he calmed down and quickly stopped the nurse, "No, just give me the paperwork, please."

"Okay", the nurse said, deciding to do whatever his patient wished, "Let's get you out of here."

He then put the pupilometer away when Matt heard a light buzz. He realized a camera in the room had been activated.

"I forgot to mention", the nurse said, ""If you come down with any headaches the next couple of days, make sure that you-"

Matt then quickly sprang into action the next moment when the nurse swung at him with a syringe. Matt put his hand in the way and the needle went into it, making him wince.

The nurse discharged some of the fluid into Matt's hand but Matt stunned him with a head-butt before elbowing him, knocking him out as he hit a chair before falling to the floor.

Matt then retracted the syringe from his hand, gasping a little. He then threw the syringe away and tried to turn the knob to open the door. To his horror, it didn't budge. He kept trying to move it, using both hands in the process, "Come on!"

But when it didn't budge in spite of him using all his might, Matt gave up with a "God damn it!"

He then decided to try the sealed window but the telephone rang. He slowly walked towards it. After some panting, he picked it up.

"You're not Franklin Nelson", said the voice he loathed from the other end.

"Fisk", he growled after exhaling.

"It's quite something to see", Fisk said, "For a blind man, you have very impressive reflexes, Mr. Murdock."

Matt turned to the camera, realizing Fisk was watching from the other end.

"Of course he has impressive reflexes", said another voice from the other end which made Matt pale.

"Adrian?!" he said in shock, anger and fear.

"Oh, Matthew", he said from the other end, "Yes, I am having a good time, tormenting you with Mr. Fisk here. You're in for one hell of a ride."

"Tell me what I was injected with, you bastard", Matt said angrily.

"Do you remember the last time that we spoke?" Fisk asked, "You said that, for the cost of postage, you could prevent my reunion with the only person that gives my life meaning. The only person that I love. Now I would've let bygones be bygones. But you didn't just threaten me, you threatened Vanessa."

"Oooh!" Chase said in a disgusted tone, "After you all criticized me for targeting your loved ones? Wow! The hypocrisy is astonishing."

Matt tried to say, "Listen to me very carefully-"

But the call was cut and he only heard static.

He then heard a buzz and realized the door had been opened. He panted a little and turned to the camera one last time, a defiant expression on his face.

He then slowly walked out of the now unlocked door.

But as he walked out, in his front was a prisoner, walking towards him threateningly, wanting to fight. Matt then turned to the other hallway, realizing there were two prisoners on that side too.

The one in the front roared and attacked with a punch. Matt ducked and punched him on the face before grabbing him by the back of the head and slamming him into the wall.

He then ducked to avoid the punch of one of the prisoners from the other hallway before punching the third one. The previous one tried to strike again but Matt grabbed his hand and flipped him to the ground before giving him a punch.

Before Matt could punch again, the one whose head he had slammed grabbed his hand from behind and slammed him into the wall. He then grabbed him by the throat and punched him.

As Matt tried to free himself, the third one ran up to him and punched him on the left cheek. The two of them grabbed Matt, trying to beat and choke him.

Matt then kicked the first one on the leg and punched him away. The third one punched him again. Matt managed to grab his feet and flipped him to the ground, falling down himself.

The two tried to get up at the same time but Matt punched him, sending him down again. Then the second one got up again, at the same time as Matt, who was panting now.

Before Matt could do a thing, the man punched him, making him stagger. Matt tried to punch him but he sidestepped to avoid and grabbed Matt from behind. He then slammed Matt into the wall and punched him again. Matt punched him back, stunning him.

The first one leapt at him from behind but he ducked and sidestepped too, making him run into the flipped one who had recovered. He pushed him out of the way and on the ground before punching Matt. Matt tried to punch but he blocked and lifted Matt before running with him towards the wall. The pushed one ran too and three ended up colliding into the wall and falling. The one who had lifted him hit the door to the nurse's office while falling and it opened.

Matt groaned and tried to get up again. The one whom he had stunned with a punch ran at him with a roar and kicked him, making him fall down again. Matt grabbed his leg and pushed him to the wall.

He grabbed Matt by the collar and punched him while the one who had hit the door kicked him too. He then tried to punch but Matt grabbed him and slammed him onto the other prisoner before slamming him into the entrance to the nurse's office.

Matt tried to push him but he resisted so he flipped to the other side while holding on to him, making them both fall.

The two tried to get up but Matt punched him down. The one onto whom he had been slammed came in and grabbing Matt, slammed him under the telephone. He then punched Matt who punched him on the knee and then on the face, making him fall.

The remaining one who was still outside came in. Matt tried to punch but he dodged and lifted him up before slamming him on a big stretcher, making the both of them roll down.

The prisoner hit the drawer but managed to get up first. Matt was trying to crawl away. He kicked Matt hard, stopping him for a second. Matt tried to crawl away again but he kicked him harder, this time making him roll a little and spit out a wad of blood.

That moment, Matt realized the syringe he had thrown was still there. Before the prisoner could kick him again, he lifted the syringe and jammed it into his thigh, making him yell in pain as he discharged the fluid into him. He then grabbed him by the collar and slammed him to the ground.

He then got up slowly. The one who had slammed him under the telephone tried to punch again but he ducked and hit him with the stretcher, making him fall down. As he tried to get up, Matt grabbed him by the collar and punched him before throwing him over the stretcher.

The last one ran at him but Matt used the stretcher for support and leapt into the air, giving him a kick which smashed him into the drawer behind. He tried to get up but Matt slammed his head on the stretcher, knocking him out.

The one who had been thrown over the stretcher grabbed him from behind, trying to choke him. Matt grabbed his hand and twisted it, making him let go. He then twisted the entire arm before pulling and slamming him on the stretcher, falling on his back himself.

The last one tried to get up with the stretcher's support but Matt kicked the stretcher away, making him fall down on his head hard, knocking him out.

Matt then lay there for many seconds, panting like hell. He had not exerted himself this much for months. A combination of the drug and the fight. Using his willpower, he got up and used a towel to wipe the blood from his face.

After some staggering, he managed to walk straight. He went through the hallway. A prisoner took out his hand from the cell and grabbed Matt's shoulder, "Hey, man! Let me out! Let me out! Come on!"

Matt freed himself and opened the door to walk through. There, he sensed 2 SWAT officers in the front.

"On the ground", one said as Matt raised his hands and tried to explain, "I was attacked."

"Put your hands behind your back."

"I was attacked. I need help."

"Put your hands behind your back and on the ground."

Matt then sat on the ground on his knees. He realized these two were under the payroll of Fisk.

As they tried to hit him with his batons, he grabbed one and threw him down as the other hit him. He then hit him two more times, making Matt stagger back. The other one got up and gave him an upwards strike, making him fall down.

The two then hit him with their batons together until Matt kicked one of them away. The other one got kicked on the knee. Then, Matt grabbed his hand and managed to throw away the baton. Both of them fell down but Matt elbowed him and punched him.

The other grabbed him but Matt managed to snatch his baton and knocked him out. The other tried to get up but Matt hit him with it twice on the shoulder. He then gave him another strike on the head and he was out.

Matt then threw the club away and walked further.

"Nice job man, now get us out of here", a prisoner said from inside.

The red light beeped and the voice said, "Code 33. Lockdown is now in effect."

Matt staggered and walked further, ignoring all that. His sole thought was how to get out of this trap he had fallen into.

Suddenly, a large prisoner grabbed him. Matt tried to hit him but he lifted him and brought him into a room.

"Light it up, Vic", he said as he slammed Matt to a wall and held a knife to his throat.

"Fisk betrays everyone!" Matt said, "He will turn on you. Fisk will turn on you, too."

A bald man walked up behind them and asked Matt, "Who are you and what does Fisk want from you?"

He then spoke in another language to another man.

"Wait! What is that? Albanian?" Matt asked before asking, "Are you Vic?"

"You are an idiot coming here", Vic said, "Fisk still controls half the guards and inmates."

"Yeah, but not the Albanians", Matt reminded him, "Not since he ratted your people out to the FBI."

Vic then made his man remove the knife from Matt's throat, making him fall on his knees in exhaustion and relief.

As he panted, Vic asked, "What is it to you?"

"Fisk hates me as much as he hates you people", Matt said, "I got him locked up here. And I'll do it again."

"Nah, I think you're gonna die in here", Vic said.

"Why did Fisk flip on your people?" Matt asked.

"It doesn't matter", Vic said.

"It matters enough that you're desperate to kill him", Matt said as he panted, "You missed him in here, and then you tried again on the outside."

"That is a very serious allegation", Vic said, "And wrong. We never tried to hit him in here."

"Fisk was shanked in the weight room", Matt reminded him.

"Not by us", Vic denied.

"Oh yeah?" Matt asked as he finally stood up, "If not you, then who?"

When Vic didn't reply, Matt said, "Listen, if I succeed, Fisk ends up right here with you and your men. And after that, you can do with him whatever you please."

"Fisk shanked Fisk", Vic said which confused Matt for a moment, "He bribed some lifer to stab him."

"He set the whole thing up?" Matt asked.

"The guy sliced him up just good enough to convince the feds", Vic said as Matt muttered, "Of course."

"This guy, he's a lifer?" Matt asked as he wiped some blood, "If he was bribed, does that mean he's still alive?"

"Better than alive, free", Vic said, stunning Matt.

"Free?" Matt asked with a humorless chuckle, "Shouldn't he be in solitary?"

"Fisk got someone to cook the books and let him out", Vic said.

Hearing some footsteps, Matt said, "Listen, there are guards coming. Give me the lifer's name. He's the only proof we have that Fisk set this whole thing up."

"So what?" Vic asked.

"So if I can get to him, I can-"

"You can barely get on your feet", Vic pointed out."

"Vic please", Matt begged, "You took a shot at Fisk and you missed. I won't. Not if you can get me out of here."

The two then stood silently for a few moments as Vic looked between Matt and his man before finally saying, "Drag that guard in here."

As Matt leaned against the wall to prevent himself from falling, his men dragged an unconscious guard inside.

"Blood was lost in the motorcade attack", Vic told Matt, "My baby cousin's blood. Find the inmate who shanked Fisk. Make good on your word. Or we'll come find you."

"His name?" Matt asked.

"Jasper Evans", Vic said. Matt nodded gratefully. By now, Vic's man had changed into the guard's outfit, ready to take Matt out.

"Get him out of here", Vic ordered him as he started supported Matt out while the other man opened the door for them.

He tried to go left but Matt said, "Wait, hold on a second. There're two guards."

"There's an exit this way", the inmate said.

"There are two guards", Matt insisted, "Trust me."

As they walked the other way, Matt said, "We need to go through the door on the left."

"It's locked", the inmate said.

"There's a key in your top-left pocket", Matt said.

The guard opened the door with the key as Matt supported himself against the wall, panting. He heard guards running at him from the other side yelling, "There he is! Get him!"

That moment, the inmate finished unlocking the door and pushed Matt through it before going in himself. Before the other guards could enter, he closed and locked the door, pushing them away.

He then supported Matt to another door which he unlocked. Matt went through it and walked one way before hearing guards and said, "The other way!"

The inmate supported him to the other way where he unlocked another door. As soon as they went through, a prisoner punched him away.

Matt grabbed the prisoner and punched him twice before the inmate disguised as guard leapt at him and smashed him into a pool table. He then punched him repeatedly.

Matt leaned against the wall and slid down, panting heavily. He could hear the chaos around him. Inmates fighting each other. Inmates fighting guards who couldn't control them as they were outnumbered.

This was almost like Hell. Hell he needed to escape so that Fisk could take his rightful place in here. Along with Chase.

"I got a civilian here! Get him out!" the inmate yelled, making a guard walk up to Matt and help him up.

He supported Matt to another door, where Matt heard the bone-chilling death throes of a guard who was being stabbed repeatedly in the throat by an inmate.

The guard unlocked the door and supported Matt through, who heard a guard beating down two inmates. The two went up to a door but there were many rioting inmates on the other side so they went up to a hallway, only to realize there were rioting inmates there too.

So they went through another hallway, the guard supporting Matt. The smoke there was pungent. Two more guards were there. They took Matt from him and supported him outside in the field, where the battle between the guards and inmates was going on.

"Open the gate! Open the gate! Open the gate!"

The guard on the tower opened the gate as Matt staggered out. He opened one more door and walked out of the prison area as the door closed behind him.

The cab was still there. Matt staggered to it and sat inside, panting heavily. Lying on the backseat, he said, "Drive!"

The combined effect of the drug, the fight with the inmates, the revelation of Fisk and Chase working together and the smoke was too much for Matt to handle right now and he passed out as the driver started driving.

* * *

Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen were walking to a house when three young men who were eve-teasers commented loudly about Karen, "Now, this is a real lady."

One whistled and said, "You coming to kiss us?"

The three stepped in their way.

"Get out of my way", Karen said.

"You got some bite", one said.

Suddenly, Slade struck him across the jaw, making him fall down. The other two moved two attack but Oliver grabbed one's arm and twisted it, dislocating it while Roy flip-kicked the third, throwing him down.

Two ran off but the one struck on the jaw said, "We were just playing."

Karen suddenly took out a gun and said, "Games like that can get your head blown off."

When he continued staring, Karen said angrily, "Why are you still here?"

Slade growled to add effect to her threat and he ran off too. Karen then gave a relieved sigh and put the gun back inside.

The three men were amazed by her inner strength.

The four then ended up in front of a house. Karen went to talk to the lady while the three discussed matter among themselves.

"We came here to help Matt against Chase", Roy said, "But this place keeps getting crazier and crazier."

"I thought the DA being a serial killer was crazy but the FBI being controlled by one man?" Oliver said.

"But we have to do something about it", Slade said.

"You're right, Slade", Oliver said, "Matt, Elektra, Jessica, Luke, Danny and Frank helped us and our world, even when they didn't have to. We can do the same for them and their world."

Karen then came back to tell them about Red Lion National Bank.

* * *

Matt's eyes opened and he groaned heavily. He was still in the moving cab.

"Where are we?" he muttered before saying to the driver, "Hey, wait! Hold up. Stop the cab."

"No problem. We'll get you home", he said.

That moment, Matt realized this wasn't the same driver. He had a different heartbeat and voice.

"Who are you?" Matt asked in stunned shock.

The driver opened the door and jumped out as Matt yelled, "Hey! Hey! No, no, no."

Matt tried to open the door to escape the still moving cab but it wouldn't budge.

"No!"

The cab drove off the dock and fell into the water with Matt locked inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is where I do my own spin on the episode.
> 
> The reunion will be happening soon. Don't worry.
> 
> My writing fails to describe the next-level prison sequence but I hope it was okay.
> 
> Oliver, Slade and Roy can't do much right now because they know only what Karen knows. But they will get their due screen-time when the reunion happens(which is very close).
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	10. I'll be there

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt gets some help in the afternath of his escape from Ryker's Island.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits and comments.
> 
> Warning- Sensitive content in this chapter. Sincere apologies to anyone who might get offended.

A street gang was driving around a small run-down neighborhood in New York. Their leader, Goldtooth was not in a sensible mood that day. Not that he did anything good when he was sensible. But when he wasn't in a sensible mood, he would do very horrible things to any random person he saw.

And then his lusty eyes caught three unfortunate victims. Prostitutes. All of them. Wearing skimpy outfits. Easy prey for him and his men.

He was especially attracted to the dark-skinned one.

"There", he said to his men, "I'll talk to that bitch."

His men stopped the car near the three.

The dark-skinned woman realized he was coming towards her and started taking backward steps.

"Where are you running?" he asked angrily, "Why do you flee?"

"Leave me alone!" she said in a terrified tone, her two friends equally terrified.

"You don't run from me!" he said angrily as he grabbed her and roughly slammed her into the wall, making her bleed and cry out in pain.

He then grabbed her by the hair and said, "You're going to give me the time of my life, bitch!"

To his men, he said, "Do what you want with the other two!"

His men then started grabbing the other two women.

That moment, a man walked out of the nearby liquor store.

He had a paper bag in his hand, something inside it. He let the bag fall down, revealing the thing inside to be a bottle of Jack Daniel's.

He walked towards the gang, who did not notice him as they were roughing up the prostitutes. The man walked up behind one of the thugs and hit him hard on the head with the bottle, killing him and splattering blood.

That moment, the other thugs noticed him. One of them tried to attack but he hit him on the face with the bottle very hard, making him spit out a huge wad of blood as he fell down, dead. A third thug turned to him but he brought the bottle down on his head very hard, putting him down as blood splattered. He hit him again with the bottle, this time on the neck, killing him.

Another tried to attack the man but he smashed his jaw with the bottle, killing him and splattering blood. Another thug brandished a knife to attack.

The man dodged his attack and grabbed his knife hand before hitting it hard with the bottle, making him scream in agony. Another thug moved to attack but he moved the thug's knife hand, making his knife go into the other thug's throat, killing him and splattering blood.

He then retracted the knife and sliced the throat of the thug he had restrained, killing him too. Another thug brandished a gun and fired but he dodged. He then grabbed his gun hand and made him fire at another thug. The bullet hit his head and he died as blood splattered on the nearby wall.

The man then hit the thug he had restrained with the bottle on the hand, breaking it before making him shoot himself in the head. The three prostitutes crawled away.

Goldtooth glared at him with in anger. He took out his gun but before he could even aim it, the man threw the bottle on him. It hit him hard on the head, making him stagger towards the wall. He tried to fire but missed. The man grabbed his arm and twisted it violently, dislocating his shoulder as he screamed in agony.

The man then stomped on his foot, making him yell more. He then threw him down and smashed his kneecap with his foot, making him yell even louder.

"Fuck you! Fuck you!" he cursed the man, in spite of the pain and terror he was feeling.

The man picked up the fallen bottle and asked Goldtooth, "You know the difference between justice and punishment?"

"What?" Goldtooth asked in confusion.

The man then undid the zipper of his jacket, revealing a vest with the symbol of a skull on it. Goldtooth was horrified on seeing the skull.

The man then undid the bottle and poured the alcohol all over Goldtooth who yelled for help in agony.

The man then took out a lighter as Goldtooth cursed again, "Fuck you!"

Instead of throwing it on him, the man put the lighter down at a distance from him and gave him a death glare, making him feel the same way the prostitutes did a while ago.

He then looked at the three prostitutes. Then he got up, turned around and walked away.

The three prostitutes then stood over him. The one he had battered was on the verge of angry tears.

"I'm sorry", he begged in a feeble voice, "I'm sorry."

The prostitute picked up the lighter. He feebly tried to beg for his life.

She threw the lighter on him as he yelled, "NOOOOO!"

He then screamed as he was burnt alive while the man walked away, no expression on his face.

He then walked towards the docks and stood there, the presence of water helping him relax. That moment, he saw a figure floating in it.

Alarmed, he jumped into the water and swam towards the unconscious person who was floating in the water.

He grabbed him and swam out, helping the person to keep his head above the water. He then put him down on the ground and then saw who he was.

"Red?!" he said in shock, "Red?! What the hell happened to you?"

He then pressed Matt's chest many times, until he finally spit out the water in his lungs.

"Red!" he said, "You okay?"

"Huh, huh", Matt panted a little before realizing who his rescuer was, "Frank?!"

"Yeah, Red, it's me", Frank Castle said, "What the hell were you doing in the water? I heard your house was bombed and that you were missing."

He gave Matt a hand, who took it gratefully. Frank then helped him up and let him put his arm around him for support.

"It's a long story", Matt said as Frank supported him to the road.

"I got all the time in the world", Frank said,

"What were you doing around here though?" Matt asked.

"Doing my laundry", Frank said, deciding not to tell Matt about what he had just done on the nearby street. Though he wasn't lying as he had been doing his laundry on the street before going to the liquor shop.

"Well", Matt said as he panted more, "You remember when we went on that other Earth?"

"Yeah", Frank said.

"Well", Matt said, "That man- Adrian Chase, he is here on this Earth."

"What the hell?" Frank said angrily, "First, Fisk gets released and now, that child-kidnapping bastard Chase is here?"

"Oh, speaking of Fisk", Matt said, "Chase and Fisk are working together."

"What the fuck is going on?" Frank muttered in anger and confusion.

"I have no idea", Matt said.

"So what happened?" Frank asked as he helped Matt sit on a bench before sitting next to him.

"Well", Matt said, "Chase bombed my house and left me for dead. I was brought to the Church where I grew up. There, the nuns healed me. Then, I heard about Fisk being released so I went to the prison to investigate. And I discovered Chase was working with him."

"Oh boy!" Frank said, "Shit keeps getting worse and worse. And the FBI is eating from Fisk's hand, I think."

"They are", Matt confirmed.

"First S.H.I.E.L.D., then Homeland Security, now the F.B.I.", Frank muttered, "I guess the C.I.A. would be the next one with a deep-rooted scandal."

"I guess so", Matt said.

"Where're you gonna go?" Frank asked.

"To my home, to recover", Matt said, "Then I will think of something to do."

"You can barely walk", Frank said, "Let me help you."

In spite of Matt's protests, Frank supported him back till his own apartment.

Frank then opened the door for him and the two walked inside.

"So", Matt asked, "What're you doing these days?"

"Well", Frank said, "I tried to build a peaceful life for myself. But I just can't. If I see crime, I have to fight it and kill the bastards."

"Same here", Matt said, "Except I don't kill."

Matt then took off his coat, tie, shirt and shoes as Frank took out a bottle of wine from his refrigerator. Matt was about to fall on the ground but Frank supported him till his bed where Matt then lay.

"Take rest, Red", Frank said as he walked out while drinking the wine, "If something happens, I'll wake you."

Matt's eyes then closed.

* * *

Matt felt someone shaking him up.

"Red!" Frank said, "Wake up! The FBI are on their way."

That moment, Matt jumped off the bed.

"What?" he asked.

"The FBI are coming". Frank said again.

Matt then put on a tracksuit with a hood on top.

"Breach!" someone said before the door was broken. Matt and Frank ran off and climbed out of the window before hiding on its side.

"Murdock's been home", someone said as he investigated, "Recently."

"Suspect's not here", one said, "NYPD has been advised. Citywide BOLO. Suspect Matthew Murdock to be considered armed and dangerous."

Matt and Frank both looked puzzled at that.

Later, when the FBI were away, the two went back inside.

"Why are you a suspect?" Frank asked.

"No idea", Matt said, "Fisk must have found out I escaped the taxi and sent them after me for some fake crime."

"Him and Chase", Frank said, "Deadly combination."

"I know", Matt said, "They're always ten steps ahead."

Matt then said, "I think you should go, for now."

"What?" Frank asked.

"You're trying to build a peaceful life", Matt said, "Combating threats from the shadows. If you're seen with me, it will be problematic for you."

"When has it not been problematic for me?" Frank said.

"Fair point", Matt said, "But it might get problematic for me. Me with the Punisher, not something they'll like."

"I guess so", Frank said, "Keep Karen safe. If anything happens to her, I'll kill you first."

"I will", Matt said as he held out his hand, "Thank you, Frank."

Frank shook his hand and said, "If you need me, call. I'll be there."

Frank then walked away as Matt considered his next move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Frank is here too. This wasn't his last appearance. But I don't think he will serve any purpose for some time so I sent him off. But he'll be back later, punishing and all.
> 
> We've had two chapters without Matt so one chapter without Oliver, Slade and Roy works. Next chapter, we get to the good stuff.
> 
> The sequence from the beginning was taken from the short film- 'The Punisher: Dirty Laundry', starring Thomas Jane as Punisher. Hope you liked it.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	11. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The good guys find a way to send Fisk back to prison but Fisk won't just let it happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Karen woke up after having a nightmare. The previous day, she had told Foggy about how she had killed James Wesley and asked him to be her lawyer in case that info ever came to light. Foggy had agreed.

She went to the bathroom and washed her face on the basin. Suddenly, she heard the window open. She wondered if Oliver, Slade and Roy were back. But in that case, wouldn't they use the door as they were staying with her.

She walked towards the window, holding a book as a weapon, in case there was any intruder. She gasped on seeing someone close the window, but gave a relieved sigh on seeing it was a man wearing a black suit with a padded mask on top.

She lowered the book as a suited Matt turned to her.

"Hey Karen", he said awkwardly.

"You almost gave me a heart attack", was the only response Karen could give after all the recent craziness in her life. She lowered the book and walked away.

Later, Karen was making coffee as Matt walked up behind her, "I've been staying where I grew up. There's a reason I stayed away, Karen."

"Yeah", Karen said sarcastically, "If you say it was to protect me, I'm seriously gonna throw up."

"I can't protect you", Matt said, "Not from Fisk. I can't even protect myself."

"What about Adrian Chase?" Karen asked, stunning Matt.

"Chase?" Matt asked, "How do you know about him?"

"Three of your friends have shown up here", Karen said, "Say they're from another Earth- Oliver Queen, Slade Wilson and Roy Harper."

"They're here?" Matt asked in stunned shock, not believing what he was hearing.

"Yes, but they've gone out right now", Karen said, "Sure you don't want coffee?"

"If you wanna yell at me, go right ahead", Matt said.

Karen turned to face him and said, "Did I ever tell you about my old neighbor, when I was growing up? Mr. Larssen. Well, he was this nice Norwegian guy. He let his wife do his talking. But on the days when it'd get really cold you know, and stuff would freeze, and you'd need help moving your car or, uh unstick a door, Mr. Larssen was always there. So, one winter, his wife hit a patch of black ice. The whole town turned out for her funeral. And Mr. Larssen sat there through the sermon and then he gathered up his casseroles and went back to work on the farm, like it was just another day. He never said a word about it. And I thought I'd go over there and be a good neighbor see if he wanted to talk about what happened. And you know what he said? "What for?"

She scoffed and turning around, took out the coffee before taking a sip, "You know what? You came to Foggy because you needed something from him. What do you need from me, Matt?"

"Fisk staged the attack on himself in prison", Matt said as he stood up, "That's how he, uh, tricked the FBI into moving him to a hotel. Got some lifer named Jasper Evans to shank him and then arranged for him to walk out of prison. On the books, Evans is in solitary. In reality, he's been set free."

"Can you prove that?" Karen asked.

"Yeah, if I can find him", Matt said, "Get him to talk to you. Bulletin publishes the details. Fisk is exposed. And the FBI will be forced to send him back to prison. So, yeah, you're right. I came to you 'cause I needed something. Your help. What do you say? You wanna help me?"

"Maybe", Karen said, "But what about your friends? Don't you wanna meet them?"

"Not really", Matt said. Karen walked to her room and closed the door.

Matt stood there quietly for a while, wondering if he should meet Oliver, Slade and Roy after all. But he decided not to.

* * *

Dex was asleep on his bed. He was having nightmares and shaking in the bed.

_You probably don't remember me._

_I'm Julie._

_Do you wanna hang out after? How did you know I worked there for three years? You were only there for one._

_Let go of me, Dex._

_I said let go! Let go of me, Dex._

_I said let go!_

Dex's eyes opened and he shot out of bed, breathing heavily and sweating profusely. Julie had started working at the hotel and he had asked her out.

But during the date, he had accidentally revealed to her that he had been stalking her, scaring her off. He had tried to stop her but she had screamed at him to 'Let go!' He had then let her go as the entire room was staring at him.

Dex walked to the cupboard, wearing only his underpants and took out his old recorder. His now dead therapist, Mercer had taught him empathy and he had all that in the recordings.

He put it on the bed and sitting down, put the headphones around himself, listening to what she had said in those recordings.

" _Your internal compass isn't broken, Dex. It just works better with a North Star to guide you."_

" _What if I can't find one?"_

" _Then you'll rely on our structure. A tidy physical space. A disciplined vocation."_

Dex closed his eyes and lay on the bed, listening to the recordings. That moment, his alarm beeped but he quickly shut it off and continued listening.

* * *

Fisk opened his cupboard and looked at the different shirts. He picked out a black one, deciding to wear it. After he had put it on, his eyes fell on a beautiful, white coat, which he felt would make him look magnificent.

He picked it out and put it around him before closing up the buttons. Now, he looked all magnificent, royal and fascinating. He seemed like he was above everyone. He then opened a drawer and took out two extra buttons, which he put on his sleeves.

He then walked and stood over the stairs. The other agents there looked at him for a moment and were awed by how magnificent and imposing he looked now with the white coat on him. Chase just looked at him for a second and turned away to do his work.

* * *

"It's total bullshit", Karen told Foggy, Oliver, Slade and Roy as they sat in the car, "I can't believe Matt would even ask."

"But I think it makes sense", Oliver said, "And honestly, Karen, I know you've got a lot on your plate, but what he recommended is actually a good way to end Fisk."

"Yes", Roy said, "No matter how you feel about Matt's recent actions, this is something you can't pass off as bullshit."

"These two are right", Slade said, "And Matt doesn't want to meet us now."

"No", Karen said, "He doesn't. He thinks by staying away, he protects everyone."

"Just when I thought there were no more similarities between you and him", Slade said to Oliver.

"These three are right", Foggy told Karen, "I think you should help him. On one condition."

"What?" she asked.

"Matt turns himself in to the FBI", Foggy said.

"What? No", an exasperated Karen immediately rejected the idea.

"What the hell, Foggy?" Oliver said, equally exasperated.

"Why do you hate your friend so much?" Slade muttered.

"They're only up in our chili because they're looking for Matt", Foggy said.

"So you'll give him to them?" Roy asked incredulously.

"Even if it was the right thing to do", Karen said, "Matt will never agree to it."

"There's no reason to think the FBI knows anything about Matt's other life", Foggy pointed out to them, "But if we can give 'em that witness, Matt's in the clear. So we all are."

"That makes sense", Oliver said, "But what if the FBI have something on him? What will you do then?"

Foggy had no answer this time.

"I have an idea", Slade said, "If the FBI have anything on him, we will get him out."

"What?" Roy asked.

"We will break him out", Slade said.

"And Matt's a fugitive for the rest of his life?" Foggy asked.

"Better than being in a cell", Oliver said, "And if we get him out, he can stay on our Earth. He has a life there too, and no one will look for him."

"In that case", Foggy said, "I could reach out as Matt's attorney, negotiate his surrender."

"Okay", Karen said, "But I'm not ready to forgive him."

"I get it", Foggy said.

"You know", Karen said, "You shouldn't be either. I mean, he stole your identity, made you a target."

"Has Matt been a shitty friend lately?" Foggy asked rhetorically, "Without a doubt."

"Your treatment of him wasn't very good either", Oliver told them, "You treated him badly when you found out he was Daredevil. Both of you."

Foggy and Karen gave sighs of guilt on hearing that. Oliver was right when he said that.

"You're right, Oliver", Foggy said finally, "But I think the way he's treating us now, deep down, it's hurting him as much as it's hurting us."

"How do you figure?" Karen asked.

"He could have gone to any reporter, Karen", Foggy said, "But he came to you. Maybe Matt's finally coming to his senses. But even if he isn't, the way he's treating us is on him, just like the way we treated him when we found out he was Daredevil is on us. Us turning our backs would be on us too. People have bailed on Matt his whole life, and I'm not gonna be one of 'em. You do what you want, but that's not the kind of friend I wanna be."

Karen chuckled and sighed before saying, "It's like you argue for a living or something."

"Was it too much?" he asked.

"Honestly", Oliver said, "It was. And I hope you two stop treating him the way you do."

"Matt said he was staying at the place where he grew up", Karen said, "Do you know where that is?"

* * *

Dex put the tray of food on Fisk's table and said, "I don't know what strings you had to pull to get that waitress a job, but it was a waste of your time."

Fisk didn't respond and Chase just continued pacing around.

"Yeah, they train us in counterintel at Quantico", Dex said to Fisk to make him respond, "You really think I'm gonna fall for some bush-league honey trap? You got it in your head that she means something to me. But she doesn't. She doesn't mean shit to me."

Fisk or Chase still didn't respond.

Dex angrily said, "So what? You-You have me tailed for a few days, you think you know me? Think you got me dialed? You don't, all right? You don't know anything about me."

There was still no response.

Dex angrily threw the tray on the ground, "SAY SOMETHING!"

As he breathed heavily and tried to calm himself, Chase looked between him and Fisk. Fisk looked at the fallen tray and then at Dex as he inhaled before finally saying, "When I was a boy I beat my father's skull in with a hammer. I was 12 years old. Young for my age, in fact. Terribly inexperienced. I'd never been to a dance with a girl or stayed up past midnight. Never been out of the city or even taken the subway on my own. Yet there I was twelve years old standing over my father's body watching him die by my hand."

Fisk then rose up and continued, "That feeling. That moment. I sense it's something you're familiar with. You were taught to hide beneath many fictions. You fashioned yourself into something the world would tolerate. A soldier doing his patriotic duty. A sniper in the FBI. The watchful companion of a nice young woman."

"You destroyed what we had", Dex said angrily.

"Did he?" Chase asked him rhetorically.

"If it were honest and true, no one could have destroyed it", Fisk said.

"I should've let you die", Dex said as Fisk moved closer, "Stay back."

Chase put a hand on Dex's shoulder and said, "I understand how you feel. My father wanted to disown me because I was sick. When I found out, I was angry. Lost. I wanted to kill him. But someone else killed him instead. He took my revenge away. He destroyed me. So I diverted all of my anger and hate to that man. But another man thwarted me. So now all my anger and hate has been diverted to him. No one understood me. Everyone rejected me for who I was."

Fisk added, "Julie never would've understood you. And society won't either. It punishes people like you. Like the three of us."

Dex looked between the two and shook his head in denial. He then walked out of the room. Fisk watched him with interest while Chase watched him too, a smirk on his face.

* * *

Later, Dex sat in front of the cameras, but he could not shake out what they had said to him.

_No one understood me._

_Everyone rejected me for who I was._

_Julie never would've understood you._

_The real you._

_She never would've understood the real you._

_And society won't either._

_It punishes people like you._

_Like the three of us._

"Dex!"

Dex turned to look at Agent Alvarez, who was holding a tray with two cups of coffee and had a newspaper tucked under her arm.

"They're throwing you under the bus", she said as she handed him the newspaper and put down one of the coffee cups.

"I'm sorry, Dex", she said sympathetically as she walked away, "It isn't right."

Dex looked at the headline-  _"FBI investigates one of their own."_

And his photo was there, right under the headline.

* * *

Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen were sitting in the church when Sister Maggie passed by.

"Sister Maggie?" Karen said as the four got up.

"Can I help you lot?" Maggie asked them.

"One of the nuns said we should speak with you", Oliver said, "We're looking for Matt Murdock."

"I'm sure he swore you to secrecy", Karen said, "But uh, he came to see me this morning. Asked for my help."

"Is he here?" Roy asked.

"No, he's not", Maggie said.

"Sorry to bother you", Slade said as they prepared to walk away.

""And some bloody their fists trying to keep the Kitchen safe"", Maggie said, making Karen stop.

"I wrote that", she said.

"It was in your piece about Daredevil", Maggie said as she walked towards the four, "He's a complicated man."

"Tell me about it", Roy muttered.

Karen chuckled and agreed, "Yes, he is."

"I've read several of your articles the past few days", Maggie said, "I've been trying to find some insight."

"Did you find any?" Karen asked as she sat down, "'Cause I sure as hell didn't. Oh, I'm sorry. Wears you out, doesn't it? Saving him from himself. Yeah. I don't think I can do it anymore. I think I'm done."

"How is Matt?" Oliver asked her, "He was attacked in his home. He was injured."

"His physical condition is getting better", Maggie said, "But he seems to be resentful of some friends of his for not warning him about the attack."

Oliver's eyes now widened. He looked at Slade and Roy, who also realized what he had. Matt did not want to see them because he was angry at them for not warning him about Chase.

"Matt was a tough one when he was a kid", Maggie then told Karen, "He held the record for the most Hail Marys, five years running."

"Wow!" Roy commented.

"I wonder how many he'd have to say these days", Karen said.

"He came to us right after he lost his father. His only family", Maggie narrated to the four, "He was alone in the world. In his private darkness. Surrounded by strangers. Yet he seemed fine during the day. He'd eat with the others attend his classes, go to mass. But he was plagued by awful nightmares. He'd wake in a sweat, screaming."

Oliver sighed sadly, knowing full well what Matt would have gone through, as he himself had gone through the very same thing.

"He didn't say what they were about. He'd just call out for help", Maggie continued as she sat next to Karen, "So I'd go, and I'd hold his hand till he fell back asleep. But I have so many children under my care. Matthew wasn't the only one. His nightmares went on for months. One night, Matthew called for help and I didn't answer. I didn't go to him. He never asked us for anything again. He shut us out. Shut everyone out. Everyone in Matthew's life abandoned him. Including me."

"Don't blame yourself, Sister", Oliver assured her, feeling a little unnerved at the parallels between Matt and himself, "I'm sure you tried your best."

"Maybe, maybe not", she said, "When someone in need tries to push you away, you have to find the strength to hold on tighter."

She then got up and walked away.

"I almost pushed everyone away twice", Oliver said to the others, "I won't let Matt make the same mistake. Like Sister Maggie said, we have to find the strength to hold on tighter."

* * *

Later, Karen walked into the place which was Jasper Evans' address. She had given $80 to the young boy outside.

Everyone was asleep though.

She shook one of the men and as his eyes barely opened, she asked, "Can you point me to, uh, Jasper Evans?"

"What the hell's it to you?"

Karen turned to look at a man of average height staring at her. She knew who he was though.

"Everybody out", he said as everyone got up and started moving away, "Get out!"

Everyone ran out as Karen looked at him and said his name, "Jasper Evans!"

That moment, a man grabbed her from behind and put a knife to her throat. Gasping, she elbowed him, making him let go.

He raised his knife again but it was hit by an arrow, disarming him. They all looked up to see Oliver, dressed in his Green Arrow suit.

He jumped down and smacked the man with his bow, knocking him out. Jasper got distracted and was kicked from behind by Matt, dressed in his black suit. Matt then grabbed him and threw him to a side.

A few more thugs arrived. Roy, dressed as Arsenal, suddenly jumped down. One of the thugs tried to hit him but he dodged and hit him with his metal arm, knocking him out.

Another was grabbed by Slade, in his Deathstroke armor, and slammed into a wall. A fourth one ran at them but a woman in a red suit jumped down and punched him out.

Jasper tried to attack again but Matt slammed him into a wall and angrily slammed him down. He then punched him hard.

"Matt!" Oliver called out.

Matt was about to punch him again.

"MATT!"

Matt stopped and panted.

The woman took off her scarf, revealing herself to be Elektra.

"Matthew!" she said, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Matt asked sarcastically, "For not being around when I was attacked?"

"I deserved that", she said, "But I'm here to make it up to you."

"How the hell did you get here?" Oliver asked her.

"I arrived here yesterday night", Elektra said, "And I've been shadowing Karen for a while."

"Wow", Karen said, "That's just-"

"So you three are here?" Matt said as he got up to face the Earth-1 trio, "To help me against Chase?"

"Look, Matt", Roy said, "I know you are pissed-"

"Why didn't you come earlier?" Matt asked, "You must have known he's out before he attacked me."

"I'm sorry, Matt", Oliver said sincerely, "Our hands were full-"

"You could've warned me at least", Matt said.

"It's my fault, Matt", Slade said regretfully, "I'm the reason-"

"You know what?" Oliver said, "You're right. There is no excuse for us not warning you or not coming to help you earlier. I admit. I screwed up. But we are here now, all three of us, and Elektra. And we will help you in taking down Chase and Fisk as well."

"Yes, Matthew", Elektra said, "We're here to help and atone for any mistakes on our part."

With a heavy sigh, Matt finally said, "You're right. I-I get it. You all screwed up. It's not like I haven't screwed up. I wasn't around when Chase tricked you into killing Malone, Oliver. So it's all in the past. Thank you, all of you, for helping me. And it's good to see you all."

"We haven't helped you, Matt", Oliver said, "Not yet. But we will. And it's good to see you too."

"We will", Elektra said too, "And like Oliver said, good to see you."

"Same here", Roy said.

"Yes. Me too", Slade said.

Matt suddenly remembered something and said, "Chase and Fisk are working together."

"What?" all five of them said simultaneously, shocked beyond measure.

"Yes", Matt said, "I went to Ryker's Island to meet the Albanians. There, the two revealed they were watching me."

"Things just got so much worse", Roy said.

"Tell me about it", Elektra muttered.

"So what should we do?" Slade asked.

"Well, for starters", Matt said as he grabbed Evans by the collar and shoved him to the couch, "It's your lucky day. I'm gonna give you a choice. Option one: I call the FBI and Wilson Fisk has you killed before you can tell 'em how you got out of prison. Option two: you tell this nice reporter the truth about what you did for Fisk and I'll let you run someplace Fisk will never find you."

"I can't", Jasper said.

"Cool", Matt said, "Option one."

"No, if I talk, Fisk kills my son!" he said, pointing to the young boy to whom Karen had paid the money. He now lay unconscious.

Jasper continued, "Look at this place. I grew up here. We had a good life before the neighborhood went down and I got myself put away. I left my son without a father. And this is what he does with his life. If I go back inside, it won't be long until he's sharin' a cell with me or worse."

"Well, if he stays out of prison, a lot of innocent people are going to die", Oliver said.

"So you can tell my paper the truth and we let you and your son run far away or you can go back to prison and I will print the story like you talked anyway", Karen said.

"You would lie and get us both killed? Evans asked.

"Your choice", Karen said.

* * *

Later, Foggy convinced Nadeem to hear what Jasper Evans had to say and told him it would prove Matt's innocence, who was ready to turn himself in.

Nadeem told that to his Hattley, who seemed shocked that Evans was not in prison but free.

Matt got ready to surrender himself and dressed in a suit, with Maggie telling him to let his friends in.

* * *

Dex's mental state was now deteriorating with the news that the FBI was throwing him under the bus. The very organization he had served so faithfully for so long.

He tried to remember everything Mercer told him but it got overlapped with things said by Julie, Fisk and Chase.

He had taken out a gun, ready to shoot himself. That moment, his phone rang.

Putting the gun away, he accepted the call.

When I was in prison, my mother passed away", Fisk said from the other end, "Among her effects was a shoebox with my name on it. A keepsake box of sorts. It was full of happy relics from my life. The gifts that I made her when I was young. The odd news clipping. And the hammer. The instrument of my father's death. I thought that she had thrown it away. But she was proud of what I had done, of who I was. She accepted me, without shame. And that's what I want for you. Someone to accept you, without shame. I do. And I've sent you a gift, an opportunity to become your true self. And if you accept this unlike everyone in your life, I will never abandon you. The decision is yours."

The call was then cut. There was a knock on the door.

On his guard, Dex walked up to the door and carefully opened it.

"A car is waiting for you, sir", Felix Manning said to him, "If you care to come with me."

* * *

Star City, Earth-1

Ricardo Diaz was sitting in his lair, looking at the tubes of Vertigo his men had produced. Suddenly, a blue portal opened and Adrian Chase walked out, dressed up in his Prometheus suit.

"Mr. Chase", Diaz said, "How's it going?"

"Very well, Mr. Diaz", Chase said, "So how much of the city is yours?"

"Half of the SCPD", Diaz said, "Even DA Arnad."

"Like I said", Chase said, "I drew Oliver Queen away from here and look where that is getting you."

"I know", Diaz said, "And that Spartan isn't doing a good job, leading them."

"Yes", Adrian said, "He didn't look like an efficient leader either. By the way, now that Oliver, Slade Wilson and Roy Harper are there too to help Matt, I need your help."

"Considering you made my work easier", Diaz said, "I will help."

"Thank you", Chase said, "But I think your friends will be needed too in this one."

"All right", Diaz said, "Anything else?"

"You found the one I asked you to look for?" Chase asked.

"I did", Diaz said.

"Contact him", Chase said, "He will be useful here."

* * *

New York, Earth-199999

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" Foggy asked Matt.

"You confident the FBI Agent can be trusted?" Matt asked Foggy.

"Nadeem's a ball breaker, but he seems genuinely interested in the truth", Foggy said, "Yeah. I trust him."

"Then I'm ready", Matt said.

"If things don't go according to plan", Oliver said, "We're here for you, Matt."

"They won't be able to do anything to you", Elektra said.

"Thank you", Matt said to both.

* * *

"For the record, state your name", Karen said to Evans in front of the camera at the Bulletin with Ellison.

"My name is Jasper Evans."

"Good. Now, can you tell us how you know Wilson Fisk?" she asked.

That moment, the lights went out.

"What the hell is going on?" Evans asked in fear as he looked around with Karen and Ellison.

* * *

Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy and Foggy were sitting outside when all the lights went out.

The six got up and looked around.

Matt heard yelling in the distance.

"Foggy, find Karen", Matt said, "Get her out of here."

"Oh, shit", Foggy said as he ran to do what Matt said, "This is not happening."

"What is happening?" Roy asked.

"Nothing good, I guess", Oliver said.

"Why am I not surprised?" Slade muttered.

* * *

"Hey", a man said to two figures he saw walking inside the Bulletin, "You two can't be here!"

One of them suddenly hit him with a gauntlet covered hand and hit his leg with a club, sending him to the ground. The figure then snapped his neck as everyone gasped in horror. He then threw the stick at a woman and it went into her throat, killing her.

The other figure threw a shuriken and it hit a man in the throat, killing him.

The first one then hit another person with the stick on the throat hard, killing him. The other one brandished a sword and sliced the throat of another woman, killing her.

The first one grabbed a man and snapped his neck while the other one sliced a man's feet, putting him down before stabbing him in the throat.

* * *

Karen opened the door slightly and peeked outside. She was horrified to see what was going on. Two men. One of them was dressed in a black suit with a bow and arrows. He used a sword to kill people. The other one was dressed all in red. The costume was very familiar to Karen but she had no idea who this was.

She closed the door and ran inside.

"Karen? What's going on?" Ellison asked.

Karen took out her gun from her bag and aimed it at the door, waiting for the two.

* * *

The red suited one retracted his stick from the dead woman's throat.

Foggy walked inside. The two turned to him. Foggy gasped on seeing both. But he was more horrified by the red suited one.

His suit was an exact replica of Matt's red Daredevil suit. But who the hell was he?

He threw the stick at Foggy's throat. Foggy closed his eyes, preparing for the end.

But the stick never hit him. He slowly opened his eyes and saw the stick inches from his face. A hand was holding it. He turned to his side and saw Matt, dressed in his black suit. He had stopped the stick at the last moment.

Looking between him and the two killers, one of whom was the fake Daredevil, Foggy ran off into the room where Karen, Ellison and Evans were hiding.

"Who are you?" Matt asked the fake Daredevil as he circled the two killers.

With a smirk, the imposter said, "I'm Daredevil."

Prometheus threw a shuriken at Matt. But it was deflected by a green arrow.

Oliver and Roy walked up next to Matt, suits on and arrows aimed at the two killers. Slade and Elektra walked up there too, swords pointed at the two killers.

"Mr. Queen, Mr. Harper", Chase started greeting, "Mr. Wilson, Miss Natchios. Funny how you keep running into people."

"You went after my friend", Oliver said with gritted teeth.

"All because you didn't kill me", Chase said.

"A mistake I'm going to correct", Oliver said.

"You will pay for what you did, Adrian", Elektra said.

"Surrender", Slade said, "You're outnumbered."

"Are we?" Chase asked.

He suddenly took out the interdimensional extrapolator and opened a portal. Out jumped Ricardo Diaz with four figures.

One of them was a tall man with a shield. Then there was a woman with red hair and some kind of firing weapon on her wrist. Then there was a dark-skinned woman who looked very dangerous. But the last one made Oliver and Slade's jaws drop.

"Joe!" Slade said in horror.

"Hello, father", Joe said as he brandished his sword, "Long time no see."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How could I not stop it there? I personally think the fight deserves its own chapter.
> 
> I did not make a big deal out of their reunion because if you think about it, all the stuff that's going on stops them from showing how happy they actually are to see each other. But I hope it was worth it.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	12. Battle at the Bulletin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy battle Adrian, the fake Daredevil, Joe, Diaz and his three companions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy stood on one side while Adrian, Fakedevil, Joe, Diaz and his three companions stood on the other side, waiting for the other to make a move.

Matt and Oliver charged first. Matt threw the stick at Fakedevil, who dodged while Oliver fired an arrow at Chase, who deflected it with his sword.

Fakedevil tried to attack with his other stick but Matt blocked and punched him twice while Oliver tried to slid and tried to smack Adrian's legs with his bow but he flipped behind Oliver and tried to hit him with the sword, which he dodged by ducking.

Matt blocked another attack and elbowed Fakedevil before being hit in the abdomen by his stick. He used his elbow to block another strike and punched him on the face. Slade and Joe clashed swords again while Diaz leapt at Roy who sidestepped to avoid and tried to smack him with his bow, which he ducked to avoid.

The red-haired one fired a dart at Elektra, who deflected it before charging at the three. The shield guy rushed her and clashed his shield with her sword. The Red Dart fired another dart but she backed and ducked to avoid it.

"Don't do this, son", Slade begged Joe as they were in a deadlock.

"You are helping Oliver and his friends?" Joe asked angrily, "Shameful!"

Matt punched Fakedevil again and he punched back. Matt blocked two punches from him before punching him so hard that he staggered back. Adrian swung his sword at Oliver who leaned backwards to avoid before smacking him with the bow, making him stagger back. Oliver tried to attack again but Adrian kicked him on the chest in a rotatory motion, making him stagger back.

Diaz jumped back to avoid another strike from Roy before trying to sweep his feet from under him, which he flipped to avoid. Elektra ducked to avoid a blow from shield guy before turning around and deflecting a dart fired by Red Dart. She heard the dark-skinned one sneaking up on her and pushed her leg back, kicking her away.

Slade and Joe were in a deadlock again. Slade pushed him back, making him hit the wall and drop the sword due being stunned. Slade then rushed him, ready to attack with a punch. At the last moment, Joe ducked and Slade hit the wall instead. Joe punched him in the stomach but Slade tripped him, making him fall and roll away slightly.

Fakedevil recovered and tried to hit Matt with the stick, who ducked to avoid. He tried to hit again but Matt avoided again before punching him twice. Matt then blocked a kick and punched him hard again, making him stagger towards a table.

He attacked again with the stick but Matt ducked and punched him in the abdomen, then on the face. Matt then gave him an uppercut and slammed him into a pillar. He tried to get up but Matt kneed him on the chest, making him fall down again.

Diaz took out a gun and fired. Roy ran to avoid the bullets and flipped behind a cubicle. When Diaz stopped to reload, Roy leapt out and threw a fletchette, disarming him. Before Diaz could recover, Roy gave him a flying kick, making him fall back.

Oliver and Adrian clashed their weapons.

"So you haven't lost it, Oliver", Adrian said with a smirk.

"I haven't", Oliver said, "And you will see."

Oliver kicked Adrian away. Adrian flipped and landed before throwing a shuriken. Oliver deflected it with his bow. The two charged each other.

Slade tried to bring down the hilt of his sword on Joe, but he rolled away to avoid. He then raised his foot and kicked Slade before taking out a knife and stabbing him in the thigh. Slade grunted and punched Joe before lifting him by the collar and head-butting him. He then threw him away.

As Joe got up, Slade pulled out the knife and threw it away.

"There's the monster who I think of as my father", Joe sneered.

"I am not a monster anymore", Slade said in a resigned voice as he raised his sword to defend himself.

Elektra ducked to avoid a blow from shield guy before jumping into the air and kicking him with both feet, sending him flying off. She ducked to avoid another dart and turning around, flip-kicked Red Dart, throwing her off. The dark-skinned one was now just observing from a corner.

Fakedevil tried to attack Matt but he blocked with his elbow. He dodged an attack from the stick before blocking another with his elbow. He then punched Fakedevil on the face. Fakedevil tried to attack with the stick again but Matt backed up to avoid. Fakedevil attacked again but Matt grabbed his hand and punched him on the face.

Fakedevil freed his hand and tried to strike with the stick again but Matt dodged. Matt blocked an elbow and head-butted him. Fakedevil tried to hit him with the stick but he blocked. He tried to punch with the other hand but Matt backed up to avoid.

Matt blocked another attack and punched him on the face before pushing him off. He rolled on the ground and then stood up in a crouching positon.

Oliver threw a fletchette but Adrian deflected it with a shuriken. Oliver then leapt and gave Adrian a flying kick, making him stagger back. As Oliver tried to smack him with the bow, Adrian ducked and punched him in the stomach before grabbing him by the back of the head and flipping him to the ground at a distance.

Roy dodged a strike from Diaz and smacked him with the bow, making him stagger back. He then swept his feet from under him. He tried to hit him with the bow again but he rolled away to avoid and raising his foot, kicked Roy on the face, making him stagger back.

Slade was backed up against the wall, blocking all the strikes by Joe. The two were in a deadlock again and Slade pushed Joe back.

Elektra picked up shield guy by the collar and threw him over a table. Red Dart tried to get up but Elektra leapt and gave her a flying kick, sending her flying off again,

Fakedevil spit out a wad of blood and threw his stick on the ground. Ricocheting off the ground, it hit Matt on the face, stunning him. Before Matt could recover, Fakedevil rushed him and grabbing him, slammed him to the ground. He then slid underneath a table and emerged on the other side.

As Matt tried to get up, he threw a holder on him, making him fall down again. As Matt tried to get up again, Fakedevil threw a fire extinguisher on him, making him fall back down. Before Matt could recover, Fakedevil threw the stick on a light above him, making the sparks and a vent covering fall down on him. Matt slid away at the last moment to avoid being hit.

Oliver kicked Adrian away and got up with a flip. Adrian tried to punch but Oliver blocked and punched him back. Adrian swung his sword forward but Oliver sidestepped to avoid before smacking him with the bow, making him stagger back.

Joe leapt at Slade and kicked him on his injured knee, making him fall down. He then elbowed Slade, knocking him down again.

"Fight me!" he commanded.

"I won't fight you", Slade said, "You're my son."

Joe tried to bring down his sword but Elektra leapt at him and gave him a flying kick, sending him flying off. The shield guy leapt at her, shield raised to hit her. She kicked him on the knee and he fell down, failing to do anything.

Diaz tried to flip kick Roy but he ducked to avoid and in a rotatory motion, smacked him with the bow, sending him back. In another rotatory motion, Roy kicked him on the chest, making him stagger back again.

As Matt got up, Fakedevil took out some pens from their holder. Matt quickly flipped and overturned a desk as he hid behind it. Fakedevil threw the pens at him. The table defended him but the pens still manage to protrude from its other end.

Fakedevil picked up a scissor and threw it too. It protruded from the other end. Matt then flipped and got up before flipping behind a cubicle as he dodged two more projectiles. He sensed a pen and tried to pick it. Fakedevil threw a pencil which grazed his hand, making him retract it reflexively.

That moment, the dark-skinned woman pressed a device and all the sounds in the vicinity were suddenly inaudible. Matt was horrified now. He couldn't hear a thing. Elektra deflected another dart and flipped to avoid another one before throwing a holder at Red Dart, making her stagger back.

She noticed the dark-skinned one and knew she was the one behind the sounds being inaudible. She rushed her. Shield guy leapt at her from behind but she sidestepped to avoid before flip kicking him away. The muter attacked Elektra with a punch which she ducked to avoid and punched her in the abdomen, making her stagger back.

Fakedevil picked up a laptop and threw it at Matt. It hit him on the face, throwing him down. Matt touched the cubicle and then flipped to its other side to avoid any further attacks. Without any sounds in the vicinity, he was ineffective in a fight.

Fakedevil stood on the other side of the cubicle, holding a baseball in his hand. He threw it at the wall on the left side of the cubicle. Ricocheting off the wall, it hit Matt on the face, stunning him. Matt then tried to stagger towards the other side of the cubicle.

Adrian tried to attack Oliver but Oliver grabbed his hand with both of his and flipped him to the ground. He then kicked Adrian on the face, stunning him. He then turned to see Matt's plight. As Fakedevil prepared to throw his stick on Matt, Oliver fired an arrow at him.

He turned and threw his stick. The two projectiles clashed and fell to the ground. Fakedevil picked up another baseball and threw it at Oliver, who fired an arrow. The arrow embedded into the baseball and both fell down.

That moment, Adrian got up and pushed Oliver off, throwing him down. He punched Oliver repeatedly on the face before Oliver pushed him off.

Elektra elbowed the muter, making her stagger again. Then, in a rotatory motion, she kicked her on the wrist. Her wrist hit the wall, pressing a button on the device. That made the sounds audible again. Matt gave a sigh of relief.

He then rushed at Fakedevil from behind and slammed him into the table. Fakedevil pushed him off but got punched on the face thrice. He then raised his elbows to try to defend himself as Matt punched more and managed to breach his defense. He angrily grabbed Matt and slammed him into some cubicles. Matt then kneed him twice.

Fakedevil tried to knee him but Matt threw him off. Matt then kicked him, making him slide away. He got up but Matt kicked him again, slamming him into a cubicle and throwing him off.

Diaz tried to punch Roy but he ducked to avoid and getting back up, hit him on the face with his metal arm, making him stagger back, dazed. As Roy moved to attack him again, Fakedevil threw a holder on him. It hit him on the head, making him stagger away.

He then threw a paperweight at Matt. Matt caught it before it hit him but Fakedevil threw a pointed object at it, shattering it into pieces. The impact stunned Matt for a second. Fakedevil threw his stick on Matt but he ran off to avoid it.

The two rushed each other. Matt blocked another punch with his elbow before punching him back. He then grabbed Fakedevil in a chokehold. Fakedevil staggered around violently, trying to free himself.

Oliver and Adrian clashed their weapons. Adrian managed to punch him in a rotatory motion, making him stagger back. Oliver recovered and pinned Adrian to a pillar with the bow before punching him, making him stagger away.

Elektra ducked to avoid a strike from shield guy before leaning backwards to avoid a swing from Joe's sword. She then flip kicked Joe away before landing in a crouching position and hitting shield guy on the knee, making him yell in pain as he fell down. She gave him a hard punch on the face, knocking him out cold.

She then turned around to deflect another dart from Red Dart who had got back up.

Fakedevil managed to pick up some scissors from a holder. He then threw it at Matt. It hit him on the shoulder and embedded into it. A stunned Matt let Fakedevil go and staggered towards a shelf. Fakedevil collapsed the shelf on top of him, pinning him under it.

Before Matt could recover, Fakedevil stomped on his face with his foot, knocking him out. With a smirk on his face, he looked around. The others were still fighting.

He walked towards a door and kicked it open, revealing Foggy, Karen, Ellison and Evans hiding. Karen had her gun aimed at him.

Karen warned, "Stop, or I'll-"

She was cut off when Fakedevil threw his stick, disarming her. Foggy rushed him and gave two punches before being thrown away into the camera.

Ellison tried to say, "The hell are you do-"

He was cut off when Fakedevil threw his stick. It hit him on the side of the abdomen and he collapsed, unconscious.

Fakedevil then picked up Karen's gun and aimed at Karen as she raised her hands, Evans doing the same. At the last moment, Fakedevil turned the gun on Evans and shot him on the head, killing him. Evans fell down, dead, his blood splattered on a news clipping behind him.

Karen could only watch in horror as Fakedevil, now covered in blood, dismantled the gun and threw it away.

With a smirk, he said, "Hello Karen. It's nice to see you again."

He then walked out. Adrian saw him coming out and said, "Everybody! Fall back!"

Adrian, Fakedevil, Joe, Diaz and his three companions then ran off, with Diaz throwing a flashbang grenade to cover their escape.

Karen walked out and gasped on seeing Matt, the scissor still sticking out of him.

"Oh, my God", she whispered, horrified, "Oh, my God."

"Matthew!" Elektra said as she ran to him, Oliver following.

Roy gave a hand to Slade, who took it. Slade then put his arm around Roy for support. Oliver and Elektra helped Matt up.

"Foggy?" Matt asked Karen.

"He's okay, he's okay", Karen assured.

"We need to get out of here", Oliver said, matter-of-fact.

"Jasper's dead?" Matt asked.

With a sad sigh, Karen said, "Yeah."

"Damn it!" Oliver muttered angrily.

"Let's get out of here, kid", Slade said.

"What about you?" Roy asked Karen.

"I'll be fine", she assured.

Oliver and Elektra then supported Matt out while Roy supported Slade out through the exit.

* * *

The FBI were climbing up the stairs through the entrance when they were confronted by Prometheus, Fakedevil, Joe, Diaz and his three companions.

The muter quickly pressed her device, blocking any sounds. Diaz punched out an agent while Fakedevil snatched an agent's gun and threw it on another one, knocking him out. Red Dart hit two with her darts, knocking them out. The muter flip kicked one out and in a rotatory motion, smacked another on the face, knocking him out.

Shield guy smashed one with his shield, knocking him out before hitting another one with it in a rotatory motion, knocking him out too. Nadeem aimed his gun at Prometheus.

"Don't move!" he commanded.

Prometheus threw a shuriken, disarming Nadeem. He then knocked him down with a punch. Joe kicked an agent away and elbowed another, knocking them both out.

They all then ran off, leaving the defeated agents on the floor.

* * *

About an hour later

Karen sat on a bench, still shocked from what had just happened. The FBI agents looked around.

Nadeem stood over a corpse, a grim expression on his face.

"What the hell happened?" another agent asked as he arrived, "Who did this?"

With a sigh, Nadeem said, "It was Daredevil. With his cohorts."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope I did a good job with the fight. It's really hard when you have to describe so many fast paced fights at once.
> 
> Evans still died. But then again, with so many people on both sides, the outcome wasn't going to be very different.
> 
> Things are getting more complicated. There is one new subplot I'll be adding myself. It has something to do with the 'military connections' Fisk and Chase spoke about in an earlier chapter.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	13. Afternath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone deals with the afternath of the incident at the Bulletin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Chase stood at the door as Fisk looked at him.

"So, it has happened?" Fisk asked him.

"It has, Mr. Fisk", Chase said with a smirk, "It is going just as said."

"What about the other thing?" Fisk asked him.

"It's being worked on", Chase said, "The friends I have called will help me with that. I may not be around for a while because of that."

"No problem, Agent Chase", Fisk assured, "I just hope the fruits of this labor are sweet."

"They will be the sweetest fruits ever", Chase said with a smirk as he walked away and closed the door behind him.

Fisk then sighed and walked upstairs. He went into his room and looked at himself in the mirror. With the coat on, he looked very magnificent.

He straightened his white coat and walked towards a shoe rack. He eyed it with interest. Interest that no normal person would show in a shoe rack. But the shoe rack wasn't normal.

Fisk opened it, revealing it to be a secret door. There was a set of stairs underneath. Fisk walked downstairs and entered a darkened room with many monitors. A woman sat there.

"Show them to me", Fisk ordered her. That moment, all the cameras the FBI had put in the penthouse appeared, and also a camera which had been installed in the monitor room of the FBI Agents.

Agent Wellers and Agent Ramsey were chatting there.

"Are you hearing this? What happened at the Bulletin?" Ramsey asked Wellers.

"We should be there, not stuck here with this asshole", Wellers grumbled, "He go to bed?"

"Turned in early, nice and cozy, while the world explodes", Ramsey said.

After noting that, Fisk said, "And now the news, Mrs. Shelby."

The news popped up in all the monitors.

"But what we do know is that, according to eyewitnesses", a reporter was saying, "The brutal attack on the Bulletin staff has been carried out by none other than Daredevil. Along with another person who has been dubbed 'The Throwing Star Killer.'"

Fisk looked at the other channels. All of them were exploding with the news of the attack that had been carried out by Daredevil and 'The Throwing Star Killer', with some of them claiming they had other cohorts too.

Looking at all of the, a smirk came across Fisk's face. Adrian had destroyed Matt's life, and now he had destroyed Daredevil's reputation.

* * *

"You're missing the point", Matt told Maggie as he applied pressure on his wound, "He didn't just find someone to wear my suit. Someone as fast and skilled as I've ever seen, and I couldn't take him. He found someone to kill me."

Maggie tried to say, "Matthew-"

"I was stupid enough to think that I had Fisk and Chase cornered", Matt interrupted her, "They knew I'd find the witness, and I just brought the sheep to slaughter. Jasper Evans is dead. He's dead and he leaves a son behind, and that's on me! I was so sure that I finally was out in front of these bastards. And Fisk and Chase, they knew I thought that. They were waiting for me."

This time, Elektra tried to say, "Matthew-"

"Foggy and Karen both could've been killed", Matt continued ranting, "And there would have been nothing I could have done to stop it. Nothing."

"You're losing blood, Matt", Oliver pointed out.

"I need to stitch you up", Maggie insisted

"I listened to you", Matt said, "I listened to you, and they almost died. God damn it. I'm such an idiot."

"No", Maggie said, "I'm the idiot. I told you to involve your friends, and I made things worse. I'm used to putting on a brave face when people bring their troubles to the church. And I find that they don't just bring their troubles, they bring their answers, too, if you let them talk enough."

Matt sat down on the steps with Elektra's help as he applied pressure to his wound. Slade too applied pressure on his thigh while Roy cleaned it.

"But what you're dealing with is so far beyond my experience that", Maggie paused for a moment, "Well, all I can hope to do is help keep your wounds stitched and your head clear, so you can be safe. And I'll be more careful about giving advice to the Devil."

"I know you're just trying to help", Matt assured her.

"Now can I please stitch those wounds?" she asked. Matt nodded and Slade did too.

She walked off to get some instruments to stitch them up as Matt took off his shirt. She arrived and cleaned Matt's wounds with cotton while she gave some more to Roy.

"Who were those other people Chase called?" Matt asked Oliver.

"One of them was Ricardo Diaz", Oliver said, "He knows I'm the Green Arrow. He leaked a doctored photo of me in the Green Arrow suit to the media and the FBI almost arrested me, but the President saved me. I guess he knows who I am because Chase told him."

"Why would Chase even tell him, though?" Elektra asked.

"To distract us from him", Oliver said, "So he could force Cisco to build an interdimensional extrapolator to this Earth."

"Who were the others?" Matt asked before remembering something, "Slade, that man with the sword-"

"Yes", Slade said, "He's my son. Joe Wilson."

"What happened?" Matt asked, "Why is he working with them? And didn't Oliver give you Intel about him when he recruited you at Lian Yu?"

"Yes, the Intel panned out", Slade said, "But this was something none of us saw coming. We thought he had been captured by some mercenaries called the 'Jackals.' But in truth, he was leading them."

"I am sorry", Matt said with sympathy and Elektra too gave him a sympathetic look.

"Why did he become the leader of a mercenary gang with no moral compass?" Elektra asked.

"He saw Slade kill a man before the Mirakuru", Oliver said on Slade's behalf, as he knew narrating that again would greatly pain him, "He did not take that well. It sent him down on a dark path."

Matt and Elektra could only feel sympathy for Slade.

"The other three?" Elektra then asked, "Who were they?"

"I don't know", Oliver said regretfully, "Never seen them before."

"There's a rumor", Slade suddenly started narrating, "About three assassins. So skilled that even the League of Assassins fear them. One of them fires darts with different features. Another carries a shield which he wields like the finest of swords. And the third has the means to drown out all kinds of sounds. They are called- The Longbow Hunters."

"Longbow Hunters", Oliver muttered.

"Catchy name", Roy commented, "And catchy story too."

"Except it doesn't seem like a story", Matt said, "She drowned out all the sounds. I couldn't hear a thing. She made me ineffective."

"Well, we will try to make sure we neutralize her first the next time we fight them", Oliver said.

"Fisk and Chase, they are ten steps ahead of us", Matt said.

"You want to hear any advice from me?" Maggie asked.

"Yes. Totally", Matt said.

"Well, how good was that copy of your suit that the imposter was wearing?" she asked him.

After a moment of silence, Matt said, "It was perfect."

Then he exchanged a look with Elektra, whose eyes widened.

"What?" Oliver asked.

"We just figured it out", Matt said.

* * *

Melvin Potter smiled as he watched Betsy get into the police car.

"Love you", he said to her.

She smiled at him and drove away.

"So Betsy's your parole officer."

Melvin turned around to see Matt, in his black suit. With him were Elektra, Oliver, Slade and Roy, all wearing their suits.

"Please don't tell anyone", he begged, "It's against the rules."

"I don't care what you do with Betsy, Melvin", Matt said as he walked closer, "You know why we are here."

"Fisk made me make the suit", Melvin said immediately in his defense, "Did that man hurt you? I'm sorry."

"Who was he?" Oliver asked.

"He didn't tell me his name", Melvin said, "But I can make you a new one to protect you against him. It'd be a fair fight."

"I don't want a new suit", Matt said.

"You don't like it?" Melvin asked.

"I've outgrown what it stood for", Matt said, puzzling Oliver and Elektra a little, "When you made my suit, there were molds, there were measurements."

"At the workshop, maybe there's something", Melvin said.

"We've been to the workshop. It's been burnt down", Elektra said.

"Yeah, I burned it down because I didn't want to help Fisk", Melvin said, "But he made me a new shop, and the FBI Agent working with him threatened Betsy."

"Who's the agent?" Roy asked immediately.

"Some Cha-", Melvin tried to remember, "Special Agent Adrian Chase."

Everyone's jaws dropped at that.

"Adrian Chase?" Oliver asked, just to be sure.

"Yes, that was his name", Melvin said.

"First the Star City administration, now the FBI", Roy muttered.

"People are dead because you helped them, Melvin", Matt said.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry", he said.

"Sorry doesn't really cut it", Elektra said.

"Why don't you lead us to your new shop?" Slade asked him.

* * *

Later, Melvin opened the door to his new shop and walked in, with Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy following him.

Melvin lifted a barricade, allowing them to walk inside. There, Oliver spotted a Daredevil suit.

"Why is the suit here?" Oliver asked as they moved towards it.

"They made me make two", Melvin said.

"Why?" Matt asked.

"Ask him yourself", Melvin said and then they heard the door close behind them. They turned to see Melvin had locked them with the suit.

"What the hell are you doing?" Slade asked.

"I have to go now", he said.

"Melvin!" Roy called out.

"Don't do this", Matt said.

"I don't have a choice", Melvin said, "They'll come for Betsy."

"Why'd they make you trap us here?" Oliver asked, "Are they coming?"

"Tell us who wore the suit", Elektra said.

"We'll find him", Matt assured, "We will put an end to this."

"I can't", Melvin said in an apologetic tone, "Fisk and Chase will know. And then they'll hurt Betsy."

"If you really loved her, you'd cut her loose", Matt said.

"That sounds like a ridiculous notion", Elektra managed to joke even in this serious situation.

"This life of yours doesn't work with Betsy", Matt said.

Melvin still made no move to open it.

"All right", Elektra said, "You tried reasoning. It didn't work."

She then ran up to the door at her full speed and kicked it hard, shattering it. She still had all her enhancements from her resurrection.

"I can't let you all leave!" Melvin said as he rushed to stop them.

Matt pushed him back. He glared at them for a moment before trying to punch. Matt ducked and punched him on the face, making him stagger back.

He attacked again but Roy kicked him away. He tried again but Slade grabbed him and slammed him into a table. He tried to get up but Oliver smacked him with his bow, making him fall back down.

As he tried to get up again, Elektra grabbed him by the collar and threw him over a table. Matt then heard some footsteps.

"Someone's coming", he said.

"I'm not supposed to be here", Melvin said as he tried to get up but Elektra pinned him down.

"It's the FBI, Melvin", Matt said.

"Why did Fisk and Chase send them?" Oliver asked.

"They're supposed to find you with the suit", Melvin told Matt before saying to the others, "And you're all his cohorts."

"Oh, God", Matt sighed, "He's framing me for being Daredevil."

Fingering the hilt of his sword, Slade said, "I am not overly fond of traitors."

"Melvin, come on", Oliver tried to reason, "They're tricking you."

"Please", Melvin pleaded, "Betsy's all I have."

"They will kill both of you after they're done with us", Slade growled.

"You gotta help me, or Betsy's dead", Melvin said.

"Who did you make the suit for?" Matt asked.

"He never told me his name", Melvin said, "But like Adrian Chase, he was an FBI Agent."

"How do you know that?" Roy asked.

"He was talking about it with the man who brought him", Melvin said.

That moment, the FBI breached the workshop and one of them threw a flashbang grenade which exploded and stunned them. Matt ran to a corner.

Oliver fired an explosive arrow which sent two agents down. Another arrived but Melvin leapt at him from behind and slammed him into the ground.

Matt leapt at one and gave him a flying kick, making him stagger back. Then Matt grabbed him from the back of the head and flipped him to the ground before kicking him on the head, knocking him out.

Elektra flip kicked one away and swept another's feet from under him before punching him out. Oliver fired an arrow which disarmed an agent. Oliver then rushed him and knocked him out with a smack.

Roy fired an explosive arrow which got two agents. He then fired at another agent. The arrow hit his leg. As he knelt down, Roy leapt and smacked him on the face with the bow, knocking him out.

Matt ducked to avoid a hit and grabbing the agent, kneed him, making him stagger back. Then, Matt flipped and hit him on the head, knocking him down. Before he could get up, Matt knocked him out cold with a punch.

Slade's armor deflected some of the bullets fired at him and he kicked an agent away before hitting another with the hilt of his sword, knocking him out.

An agent tried to hit Matt with his gun but he grabbed it and smacked it on his face, knocking him out. He then threw it away.

Melvin rushed another agent and slammed him into a crate before punching him repeatedly.

That moment, many more FBI Agents arrived. Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy hid at a corner.

"On your knees", they ordered.

As they cuffed him, he yelled, "Betsy! He'll hurt Betsy!"

Oliver fired an arrow which multiplied into two and hit two agents, knocking them down. Matt picked up a stick and threw it at an agent, knocking him out. Roy smacked an agent with his bow, knocking him out.

Slade elbowed one and slammed another to the ground. Elektra kicked one in a rotatory motion and he was thrown into another one. Both of them were out.

"I guess that's all", Oliver said.

"Yes", Matt said as he scanned the area with his senses.

"Come on, Melvin", Elektra said as she cut his cuffs.

"I am sorry", he said to them as they lead him away, "And thank you."

"Thank us by getting out of town with Betsy", Roy said.

* * *

"Don't do this to me, Betsy", a man said as Betsy shoved him into her police van.

"I wasn't the one who violated parole", she pointed out as she locked him inside, "You brought this on yourself."

"Betsy."

She turned around to see Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy. Taking out her gun, she said, "Don't."

"We're not here to hurt you", Oliver said.

"We're here about Melvin", Elektra said.

"Melvin Potter?" she asked.

That moment, Melvin stepped out from behind them.

"Melvin?" she asked.

"Wilson Fisk and Adrian Chase are coming after us", Melvin said as she hugged him.

"What? Damn it, Melvin", she said.

"Betsy, don't go home, don't go to work", Oliver said to her.

"Leave town", Matt said.

Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy then walked away as Melvin and Betsy both thanked them and started making escaping plans.

* * *

"Foggy Bear", Marci called out as she walked into his room. She was shocked to see him on his knees on the ground, looking at some papers. There were many more papers, scattered around the entire room.

"Foggy baby?" she said, "Are you okay? Because I don't think you're okay."

"Oh", Foggy said as he noticed her and started getting up, "I'm-I'm fine. I think I know what Fisk is up to."

* * *

Karen sat in her car, crying and breathing hard. She had accidentally revealed to Ellison that she knew who Daredevil was when trying to tell him that the one who attacked the Bulletin was not the real Daredevil.

He had asked her who he was but she had refused to tell him. So he had then made her quit angrily.

She took out her phone and called a number she had never thought she would call again.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Dad", she said, "It's me."

"Karen?" her father said in surprise from the other end before saying in a relieved tone, "Good Lord. I heard something on the news. That wasn't where you work, was it?"

"Yeah", Karen said as she tried to hold back her tears, "Yeah, it was. I'm okay though. I was wondering that maybe I-I could come home for a little while."

"I-I don't know", her father said, "I'm afraid the timing's not great."

"Yeah. Of course. I get it", Karen said in a resigned voice.

"But you can call anytime, all right?" her father assured her. By now, she was covering her mouth with her hand to prevent herself from crying out loud.

"Dad, I was just trying to do the right thing", she said, "It just- it all went wrong."

After a moment of silence, her father said, "That's what you do, Karen. Good night."

The call was then cut. Karen put the phone down and cried a little before wiping her tears and controlling herself.

* * *

Ray had a minor argument with his wife after which they had agreed that he would tell her the truth with some drinks. He had come into the storeroom to get some.

As he opened the fridge, he sensed movement behind him. He slowly turned around and aimed his gun at- five figures!

Before he could fire, Oliver threw a fletchette, disarming him. Matt then pinned him to the fridge with his elbow and said, "We didn't come here to fight."

"Who are you lot?" Nadeem asked as he panted.

"I'm Daredevil", Matt said, "The real one. These are my friends"

Nadeem then tried to say, "You don't look like-"

"I buried the red suit", Matt said as he removed his elbow, "The man who attacked the Bulletin with the Throwing Star Killer, he resurrected it."

"You do, however, match the description of a guy who's been tuning up FBI Agents", Nadeem said.

"Which is the last thing I ever wanted", Matt said, "But you people haven't left me any choice."

"Wake the hell up", Oliver said, "Do not play into Fisk's hands."

"He's using you lot for his gains", Slade said.

"And deep down, you know that", Elektra said.

"I hope you understand what we're trying to say", Roy said.

"Now I heard you confronted those psychos at the Bulletin and their cohorts", Matt said, "You tried to stop them and they almost killed you too. So let me ask you this, Agent Nadeem. Who do you think is the danger here? Us or them?"

Before Nadeem could respond, Matt shushed them all.

"Dad, Mom wants to know where you are", Ray's son Sami said from above.

"Don't come down, Sami", Ray said after looking at the five, "I dropped a beer. There's glass. Tell your mom I need a couple of minutes to clean it up."

"Okay", Sami said as he walked away.

"Let's just say that I believe the people that broke into my house", Nadeem said, "Let's just say that. What do you got?"

"The man who attacked the Bulletin, dressed as Daredevil", Matt said, "He's in the FBI."

His interest piqued, Nadeem said, "Keep talking."

"Is there any Adrian Chase in the FBI?" Oliver asked.

"Yes", Nadeem said, "Recent transfer from Ohio. He was in charge of Fisk with me. But now he has gone on another assignment. Why?"

With a heavy breath, Oliver said, "Because he's the Throwing Star Killer."

If Nadeem's interest had been piqued earlier, this info made his jaw drop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So with Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy, I decided I could change Melvin's fate. Honestly, in this show, he isn't really a bad guy.
> 
> He was just forced to do what he did. So him escaping with Betsy is the perfect ending for him. Though I don't blame Matt for leaving him in the show as there was no way he could've beaten so many FBI Agents with all the wounds on him alone.
> 
> Adrian, Joe, Diaz and the Longbow Hunters have gone to get something good out of all the 'military stuff.'
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	14. Infiltration and confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy and Nadeem infiltrate the residence of the agent they suspect. Karen does something rash. Adrian and Diaz meet someone. Matt later learns something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Dex was jogging near the docks. Then he spotted the one he wanted to meet. She was jogging too. He increased his pace to catch up to her, accidentally shoving another jogger out of the way.

"Julie!" he called out.

She stopped on hearing him but as soon as she saw him, she backed away in fear.

"Dex. Stay away from me", she said in a warning tone.

"Please, just hear me out", Dex begged as he stood at a safe distance from her, "I'm doing this in public so you'll feel safe. I'm staying right here. I won't come any closer."

When she made no move to run away, he started explaining, "Okay. I am so, so sorry about how things ended the other night. I'm sorry for scaring you. I just wanted to explain myself. When we worked together at the suicide hotline, I saw the way you were with other people. Patient, compassionate, and I", he panted while she gave him a look that was a mixture of confusion and disgust, "I really need that right now. My life is out of control. I have no family, and I'm about to lose my job Please. I just want to talk. Anywhere you choose. And if you say no, I'll understand and I'll never bother you again."

The two were then silent for a while.

* * *

Nadeem stood in an alley. He had investigated some other agents secretly and had arrived at a conclusion. He was now waiting for some people. He looked at his watch and then looked around for a while.

"Agent Nadeem."

He turned around to see Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy in their suits.

"You're all late", Nadeem said.

"We were early but we needed to be sure about you", Matt said.

"What's his name?" Oliver asked.

"I need to be sure about you too", Nadeem said to Matt, "You have a history of hurting people. And your friends don't look that nicer to me either. So I'm not handing you lot a federal agent if you're going to kill-"

"I don't do that", Matt said.

"I don't have an aversion to killing", Oliver said, "But I use it as a last resort."

Elektra and Slade wanted to say they do kill but they knew it would not be in their favor.

"The agents you beat up the other day. One of them is still in the hospital", Nadeem said a little harshly, "All of them just doing their jobs."

"And if they'd arrested him, who would give you this Intel?" Elektra asked.

"And who'd take down Fisk and Chase then?" Slade asked.

"If you're right about them", Nadeem said, "Then taking them down is our job."

"Oh really?" Roy asked sarcastically, "Because we all know where Fisk's been sleeping these days. And we all know which badge Chase carries these days."

"How are you so sure that Chase has infiltrated the FBI?" Nadeem asked.

"He once infiltrated the administration of a city as its District Attorney", Oliver said, "And he didn't even have a law degree. I know because I am part of that city's administration."

"If there's one thing we agree on, Agent Nadeem, it's the greater good", Matt said, "Like house incarceration I exchange for good Intel. Sometimes, people like us have to hurt one person to save another."

"So tell us his name", Oliver said.

"I need your word that you won't touch him", Nadeem said.

"You sure our word is worth anything?" Elektra asked.

"I still need to hear you all give it", Nadeem said.

"Well, we need you to testify against Fisk", Matt said, "So you got it. As for Chase, he will get his just desserts too."

"We're gonna slip into his place. Look for any evidence that ties him to the Bulletin attack or to Fisk", Nadeem started saying, "If we find any, we leave it where it is. And we set off his fire alarm on our way out."

"The fire department arrives, and you circumvent a search warrant", Matt said as he realized what Nadeem was saying.

"But if we don't find anything", Nadeem said, "The guy goes on with his life."

"Just tell us who he is", Slade growled.

With a sigh, Nadeem said, "Special Agent Ben Poindexter."

* * *

"A small decaf, and whatever she's having", Dex said to the coffee shop owner.

"I've got mine", Julie told Dex before turning to the owner, "Thanks, Richie."

"All right", Richie said as he proceeded to get their coffees.

Julie then turned to Dex who started explaining, "So, I don't know how to say this without it sounding like an insult. I was never actually into you. Or not the way you might have been thinking, anyway. I didn't know how to talk to you."

"Okay", she said in an uncertain tone.

"I wasn't-I wasn't stalking you", he stammered, "Although, I completely see how it could have come across that way. I just, I wanted to be more like you."

"Do you realize how creepy that still sounds?" she pointed out as she took the coffees from Richie.

The two sat down on a table and Dex started stammering, "You are so good. And kind. And-"

"You save lives as your job", Julie said.

"The FBI, the army before that, they helped keep me on the straight and narrow path", Dex explained, "But now, without that, it's all", he sighed, "I'm drowning in deep water, and I don't know whether I'm swimming for the surface or the bottom."

He then started panting.

"Dex, you need air", Julie said, "Breathe."

Dex then breathed slowly and calmed down.

"See, that's-that's what I'm talking about", Dex said before requesting, "You help people right themselves. I've seen you do it a hundred times. All I'm asking, just treat me like someone on the other end of the line."

"What happened at the FBI?" she asked.

"The bureau needed a scapegoat", he said and then imitated bleating.

Both of them chuckled at that.

"You know", Julie said, "What you really need is a good therapist."

"I had one. She died", Dex said as he remembered Mercer.

"Oh. I-I'm so sorry", Julie said in a sympathetic tone before saying, "Okay. I'll help you, Dex. But please, do not make me regret this."

"I promise", Dex promised, "I promise I will not."

* * *

Later, Wilson Fisk sat in front of his monitors. He was watching the hallway in the penthouse.

Two construction workers were working there right now.

Julie walked in and was shocked to see construction workers.

"Did the landlord let you in?" she asked them as she moved inside.

One of them who was now behind her got up and suddenly took out a gun before shooting her in the head. As her body fell, the men wrapped it in plastic. They were people hired by Fisk and Felix Manning.

Manning then walked in and took Julie's phone which he showed to Fisk on the camera.

Fisk was now satisfied that no one could replace him as Dex's north star.

* * *

Matt undid Poindexter's window and entered his apartment with Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy following.

They looked around for a while. Everything was neatly stacked in order. Oliver had lighted a few glow sticks to help everyone look around.

Matt opened the door and Nadeem walked in, holding a torch. Earlier that day, he had introduced Dex to a lawyer called Andrea Morales who was going to sue the FBI for his wrongful suspension.

"You lot find anything?" Nadeem asked as he closed the door behind him.

"He's very neat", Oliver said.

"He likes order", Matt said.

"So does my wife", Nadeem said as they looked around, "But she doesn't fit in your suit. Everything I have on Dex is circumstantial at best. I just left him. He was solid."

As they continued looking around, Nadeem said, "I don't see a decorated FBI Agent falling for the bullshit of Fisk and some infiltrator."

"Yeah, well that's what Fisk and Chase do", Matt said.

"They find weaknesses of people and exploit them", Slade said.

"And when you're already on your knees, you've no choice but to fall for their bullshit", Roy said.

"Even though they don't really give a damn about you", Elektra said.

Nadeem's light fell on a hole in the wall. Oliver saw it too.

"What the hell did he do?" Oliver muttered

"The suit's here. I can smell it", Matt said.

"What? You can smell it?" Nadeem asked.

"He can", Elektra said.

"One of his talents", Oliver added.

"GSR and Latex", Matt said as he opened a cupboard and parted the clothes to reveal a hidden safe.

"It must be inside that", Oliver said.

"Shit", Nadeem said as he looked at it, "I can't call a crew to crack that."

"I don't think a crew would be needed", Elektra said.

Matt started cracking the safe right there. With his senses he could detect how many times it had been rotated. He managed to open it finally.

"Wow!" Roy commented, "Nice talent."

But what they were trying to find wasn't there.

"The suit was here", Matt said.

"So I guess he moved it", Oliver said.

"In that case", Nadeem said to Matt, "You smelling eau de suit won't exactly sway a judge."

"I'm telling you, Poindexter's the guy", Matt insisted.

"It has to be him", Slade said.

"There's nothing here tying him to Fisk or the Bulletin", Nadeem said, "We got jack shit."

* * *

Morales had told Dex that she could get him reinstated in 6 months with back pay. But Dex did not want to sit idly for six months. Andrea had then gone to attend a call. So now Dex was sitting alone.

He then messaged Julie-  _"Can we talk?"_

The reply he got was-  _"I never want to see you again. Leave me alone."_

Dex then messaged her again-  _"Please Julie."_

Then he got an automated message-  _"You are sending a message from a number that has been BLOCKED."_

Dex then panted and tried to call her. The phone rang for a while and then an automated voice said, "This number has been blocked."

The call then disconnected as Dex continued panting.

* * *

" _Have you been doing our exercises?"_  Mercer asked a younger Dex in the recordings which now Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy and Nadeem were listening to.

" _Yes, but then the neighbor brought home a box of stray kittens"_ , Young Dex said in an apologetic tone, " _They were in the yard. I killed them with rocks, Dr. Mercer. I tried not to, but I liked it."_

"He is disturbed. Very disturbed", Slade said.

"Okay, so the guy has issues", Nadeem said, "Very serious issues. But that doesn't mean-"

"He's here", Matt suddenly said as he picked up footsteps at a distance.

"You should go", Oliver told Nadeem.

"No, we had a deal", Nadeem said, "No evidence, you all don't touch him."

"But we have found evidence", Roy said.

"Not the kind that holds up in court", Nadeem said.

"We got the jump on him", Elektra said, "We can get him to tell us where it is."

"You gave me your word", Ray said.

"Yeah, well we take it back", Matt said.

* * *

Outside, Dex heard a little of the muffled arguing. So he walked up to a chandelier and took out some of its crystal prisms. He then walked inside and took out a gun and binoculars.

* * *

Nadeem was again arguing with Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy when he was hit on the side by a bullet. Everyone quickly got down with Slade pulling Nadeem down too.

"The shot came from across the alley", Nadeem said as he pressed his wound.

"I think it came from downstairs", Matt said.

"I guess this guy's Lawton's doppelganger on this Earth", Oliver grumbled.

There was another gunshot. It ricocheted off the furniture behind which Matt was hiding and hit a lamp, shattering it. Matt narrowly avoided it as it fell.

"He's ricocheting the bullets", Matt said.

"Okay, Lawton couldn't do that", Oliver grumbled again.

"Go to the front door", Ray said.

"He's by the window, he's waiting for a better shot", Matt said.

"How do you know?" Nadeem asked.

Matt nodded at Elektra who threw a scattered newspaper into the air. It was hit by a gunshot and fell back down.

"He's only got three more rounds", Matt said, "I'll tell you when he reloads, and then you go."

Nadeem nodded while panting.

"Will he call for backup?" Roy asked.

"No", Matt said, "I don't think he will. But the neighbor called 911."

"God damn it, Dex", Nadeem cursed.

There were a few more gunshots, one of which shattered a mirror.

"Okay, now", Matt said, "Go, go."

Nadeem got up and Slade quickly supported him to the door from where he ran out.

Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy then climbed out of the window. They saw Dex running to them on the side stairs. Matt kicked him on the chest and he fell down.

Then they started running upstairs. Dex threw a crystal but Slade deflected it with his sword. Dex threw another but Elektra cut it into two clean halves with her sword. He threw two more but fletchettes thrown by Oliver and Roy respectively deflected them.

Before Dex could throw more, an officer threw a flashlight on him and called out, "Police! Hands in the air!"

Dex raised his hands as cops aimed their weapons at him.

"I'm an FBI Agent", Dex immediately said, "You can check my pocket. I have ID."

The cop took out his ID from his pocket, not taking the gun off him.

"Some armed suspects broke into my home", Dex started explaining.

* * *

"You gotta be kidding me", Karen said as she looked around at the beautiful penthouse in which Fisk lived.

She then turned around and looked up to see Wilson Fisk looking down on her. He was wearing his white coat, in which he looked like the most magnificent person ever.

"Ms. Page", he said as he started walking down, "I must admit, I'm surprised you're here."

"I suppose this qualifies as hard time?" Karen asked sarcastically.

"Yes, I'm sure all of this is offensive to you, given our personal history", Fisk said as he reached downstairs.

"You mean the times you tried to have me killed?" Karen asked bluntly.

"Crimes for which I'm still paying", Fisk said as he stood with his back turned to Karen.

"Yes. It's offensive", Karen then said.

"Tea?" Fisk asked as he turned around.

"No, thank you", Karen declined, "I'm not here for tea."

Fisk walked to a table and gesturing to the chair on its opposite side said, "Sit down."

Karen was hesitant.

"You came for words, at least", Fisk pointed out.

"Yeah", Karen said as she finally agreed, "Let's-Let's have some words."

Both of them took their seats.

After a moment's silence, Fisk said, "You are not writing an article about my mother."

"I'm not", she said before subtly threatening, "I could."

"To what end, Ms. Page?" Fisk asked with an emotional face, "My distress?"

"Hmm", Karen said, "Doesn't actually sound that bad, now that you say it."

"I do not welcome intrusions into my privacy", Fisk said without looking at her.

"Yet you invited me in?" Karen asked.

"You worked for Ben Urich, didn't you?" Fisk asked as he finally turned to her, "I believe he mentored you."

"Yes, before he was murdered", Karen said.

"A final lesson. One you seem not to have understood", Fisk said with a threatening undertone to it.

Karen glanced at the camera above and asked, "Is that a threat?"

"It's an observation", Fisk said.

"Well, you're right", Karen said with a slight smile, "I'm not here to talk about your mother. I'd rather talk about what she told Ben. Actually, really, rather, what she told us."

Fisk now looked at her with interest.

"See, I don't think you know, but I was with him", Karen said, "It probably wasn't fair. Two trained journalists working on a feeble old woman like that. It's easy to push her. Get her to say things she doesn't want to."

"Your point?" Fisk asked as he turned away again.

"She remembered a lot about your childhood", Karen said, "They say the oldest memories stick around the longest. She remembered a lot of little things. A lot of embarrassing things. Seems like there were a lot of those, weren't there, Willie?"

"I'm sure your readers at the Bulletin will be as entertained as you are", Fisk said.

"No, we would never print those", Karen said, "We just pass them around the office."

"How is it around your office?" Fisk asked as he looked at her again, "I heard about your misfortune."

"Before it even happened, I'm sure", Karen said as the former crime-lord stared at her, "No, the story that we will print is her very detailed description of your father. And how you murdered him."

She then inhaled sharply and said, "A hammer. At that age? Is there any part of you that isn't broken, I wonder?"

Fisk then inhaled and exhaled deeply, slightly unnerving Karen, though she managed to show a brave face.

With a sigh, Fisk said, "You asked me why I let you in. The reason is, Ms. Page, I have a few questions of my own. You are a respected journalist, but at one time you were merely a secretary at a law firm. To Matt Murdock, yes?"

"Office manager", Karen corrected.

"Intimately involved in his affairs, huh?" Fisk asked.

"His business affairs", Karen said.

"Of course", Fisk said before asking, "Tell me, so at what point did you learn about Mr. Murdock's secret life?"

Hearing that, Karen suddenly gave Fisk a shocked look for a moment.

"Yeah", Fisk said with a smirk before saying sincerely, "Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Page."

Karen now felt guilty. She thought because of her reaction, Fisk knew about Matt's secret. What she did not know was that Adrian had already told him. He had played this game just to make her feel guilty that she had outed Matt.

"Okay. Okay", she said softly before saying, "You want secrets? I can tell you a secret, Wilson. Okay if I call you that? I feel like we know each other well enough by now."

"As you wish, Karen", Fisk said.

"Great", Karen said before getting to the point, "James Wesley."

Fisk's eyes now again darted at her. Seeing she had his attention, she continued.

"What was it like for you when he disappeared?" she asked in a slightly taunting voice, "Really, it's those first 24 hours that are the worst, aren't they? When you call and you call and you call, and there's just no answer. It becomes an obsession. The calling. The never-ending loop of a ghost's voice mail in your ear. You worry. You wonder. You swear, "God damn it, if he's still living, I'm gonna kill him myself.""

Fisk was now eyeing her with an interesting expression.

"Is that what it was like for you? Did you rage at him?" she asked, "'Cause you thought he betrayed you? Because I wonder what would be worse for you. His duplicity or his death?"

Fisk was now breathing very shakily.

In a whisper, Karen said, "He died quickly. If you were wondering. Didn't suffer much. You see, Wilson, Matt Murdock isn't the person you should be worried about. I killed Wesley."

Fisk's breathing got shakier as he glared at her with a burning hatred.

"I shot him seven times", she continued taunting, "Because the clip ran out. He deserved more."

With a roar, Fisk shot out of his chair, ready to beat her to death.

"Don't move!"

It was Agent Wellers with two more agents.

"What?" Karen asked as Wellers cuffed her.

The other two lead Fisk away who gave her one last murderous glare.

"What?" Karen asked again with a groan before seeing a familiar figure at the doorway.

"Foggy?"

* * *

"Think of it as a compliment", Foggy told Karen as they walked out later.

"That they actually thought I would try to kill him?" Karen asked incredulously.

"I had to tell them something", Foggy said, who was feeling a little salty that she hadn't shown up during his debate with Tower.

"No, Foggy, you didn't", she said angrily, "You ruined it. I had him."

"Had him?" Foggy asked incredulously, "Fisk would snap you like a twig."

"At least they'd have it on video", Karen said as she pressed the button to call the elevator.

"Was that really your plan?" an exasperated Foggy asked, "God damn it, Karen. Don't turn into Matt on me."

"Look, I didn't want him to kill me", Karen said in a softer voice, "Just come after me."

"Oh, good", Foggy said sarcastically.

"Well, I got the idea from you", Karen said.

"Me?" Foggy looked puzzled.

"All that talk about Tower and catching him off guard", Karen said as she adjusted her purse on her shoulder, "And I thought, "Yeah, just get Fisk to stop thinking and reacting emotionally instead."

"I figured you were thinking something like that", Foggy said, "Not a bad plan, actually. Except for the part where you have to hope the FBI comes in before that monster beats you to death."

"Well, it doesn't matter now, does it?" Karen asked as the elevator doors opened. The two walked inside and as the elevator went down, Karen asked, "How did you even know I was here?"

"I know you", Foggy said, "When you didn't come I thought of some possibilities and this was my nightmare scenario. So I pretty much counted on it."

"At least I took my shot", Karen said.

"You took a shot", Foggy said before telling her, "Tomorrow, there's gonna be an army shooting back."

* * *

Dex was lead to the monitor room by Felix Manning. Fisk was sitting there, looking at the monitors.

"This was here the whole time?" he asked Fisk on seeing the monitors.

"Yes", Fisk said as he turned to him.

"We, um", Dex stammered, "I have a problem. Nadeem knows."

"I know he does", Fisk said, "We will take care of the problem."

Fisk then got up from the chair and walking towards Dex said, "Dex, rage cannot stay inside. It needs to go somewhere or it becomes a poison. It will kill you from within. I find that when this rage cannot stay buried in me for one more second, then a primal scream is the only satisfying release."

As Dex started inhaling heavily, Fisk said, "Yes. Yeah."

"RHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

Dex fell to his knees as he released a primal scream full of anger and frustration while Manning exited the room.

Fisk helped Dex up and hugged him like a father comforting his little son.

* * *

"He didn't have any parents", Matt told Maggie as everyone listened to the recordings that Matt had taken from Poindexter's apartment, "Spent a lot of time fighting. Angry.

Realizing her expression, Matt said, "Go ahead and say it."

"You are nothing like him, Matt", Oliver assured.

"But you want to say he sounds familiar", Matt said.

"Does it?" Maggie asked.

"I didn't have anyone either, but I'm nothing like him", Matt said, "The tapes make it sound like he was a killer at a young age. The guy's a psychopath. And I had a chance today. A shot to catch him off guard, and I blew it."

"You did what you thought was right", Elektra assured.

"You kept your word to Agent Nadeem", Maggie added.

"Yes", Slade said, "You honored the deal."

"Yeah", Matt grumbled, "And how many people will die because of it?"

"Why do you always have to focus on the negative?" Roy asked, "You're beginning to sound more like Oliver did last year."

Oliver himself gave Matt a concerned look on hearing that.

* * *

Later, Matt was punching the boxing bag to take out his frustration while Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy watched him with concern.

At the same time, Maggie was praying.

"I don't know if I have the strength to get through this", she said with joined hands as she prayed. Matt could listen to her while he continued boxing.

"He's so stubborn", Maggie continued saying, "Full of fury and foolish pride. Please watch over him. Keep him from making the same damned mistake that took you from us."

Matt boxed even harder.

"Our son is too much like you, Jack."

Matt froze. Our son? No! It was impossible!

"Mom? Mom", Matt whispered as he fell to his knees.

"Matt!" Oliver called out in concern.

"Matthew!" Elektra called out too. Slade and Roy also looked concerned.

Matt whispered to himself, "No."

* * *

Adrian Chase sat in a room in a huge building with Ricardo Diaz. Joe and the Longbow Hunters were still in the hotel at which they had decided to stay.

The man they wanted to meet arrived and sat in front of them.

"So you are Special Agent Adrian Chase?" he asked Adrian.

"I am", Adrian said.

"And you are?" the man asked Diaz.

"Ricardo Diaz", Diaz said, "But I prefer the 'Dragon.'"

"So", Chase said to the man, "You have connections to Mr. Fisk."

"I have", the man said, "He lent me money when my company was falling in due to debt. His efforts helped me rebuild it."

"So you are indebted to him, I guess", Adrian said.

"Yes", the man said, "I am."

"You will do anything he asks?" Chase asked.

"I will", the man said, "Anything. Even if it is off the books."

"And you have military contacts too?" Chase asked.

"Yes", the man said.

"Well then", Chase said, "Tell us about the progress of the 'Sentinel Project', Mr. Trask."

"The goal of the program is to identify and wipe any Enhanced who are deemed to be dangerous to the society by the governments", Bolivar Trask said, "But Trask Industries hasn't made anything like that yet. Right now, we have only managed to make one cyborg, covered with human tissue, who has superhuman strength and speed. But he cannot identify Enhanced from regular humans."

"He still works though?" Chase asked.

"He does", Trask said, "He can do anything you ask him to do."

"What is he called?" Adrian asked.

"Nuke Model 101."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now Bolivar Trask and the Trask Industries exist in my version of MCU. But the X-Men and other mutants don't exist so this project is a secret 'off the books' project to destroy any Enhanced that are considered dangerous.
> 
> In the Marvel Comics, we have Nuke, a super soldier who was created by the Weapon X Program. In the MCU, Will Simpson from Season 1 of Jessica Jones was the live action version of Nuke. But he's dead now as this fic takes place after Season 2 of Jessica Jones.
> 
> But he was never called Nuke as far as I remember. So in this story, Nuke is the first proper functioning robot created under the 'Sentinel Program' whose goal is to wipe out Enhanced people. But he can do anything that is asked of him.
> 
> Basically I twisted some concepts of Marvel and used some concepts of the 'Terminator' movies to do this.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback,


	15. Conspiracy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt struggles with the knowledge that Maggie has been his mother all along. Fisk makes a deal with the other crime-bosses.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

"You hustling me, Grandpa?" the young man asked Lantom as they played pool.

"You tell me", Lantom said cheekily.

"Did you know, Father?"

Lantom turned to see Matt standing there.

"Matthew?" Lantom asked, "What're you doing here?"

"Did you know she was my mother?" Matt asked, a hint of anger and resentment in his voice.

Lantom involuntarily stepped back on hearing the question.

"Yeah", Matt said in a betrayed tone on noting his reaction, "You knew."

"I couldn't tell you", Lantom tried to defend himself, "Even when I wanted to."

"Don't hide behind your collar, Father", Matt said angrily.

"Wait", the young man said, "You're a priest?"

"Take your money and go", Lantom told him. He took his money and walked off.

"I'm not hiding, Matthew", Lantom said as he sat on the table, "I'm right here."

"You….. of all people", Matt said in a slightly shaky voice, "All those times I looked to you for guidance. You saw me struggling and you chose to hide the one thing that could have changed everything for me. Please, Father, help me understand why you would do that."

"I prayed for Maggie to find it in herself to tell you years ago", Lantom said.

"She couldn't find it in herself to walk nine blocks to visit me as a kid", Matt said resentfully, "Or to comfort me when my father was murdered and I thought that- I knew that I was alone in this world."

"You were never alone-"

"YES, I WAS!" Matt yelled as loudly as he could without attracting attention, "And you let me believe it."

"Yes", Lantom said regretfully, "Yes, we did."

"Why?" Matt asked.

"What did Maggie say?" Lantom asked.

"I'm asking you", Matt pointed out.

"Maggie's a good person, Matthew", Lantom said, "Flawed, like us all. And tortured over decisions she's made. But she dedicated her life to making amends."

"You still haven't answered the question", Matt said in a frustrated tone.

"Growing up without your parents, Matthew, you don't grow to see them as people", Lantom said, "You need to understand that to understand her."

Lantom and Matt then sat on a table and Lantom narrated to him about how Maggie first met Jack. She had gone to see a boxing match of Jack and had been immediately attracted to him.

Eventually, they had fallen in love and conceived him. But after his birth, she had suffered from post-partum depression as she believed she had turned away from God.

So she had gone back to work as a nun, leaving Jack and her little son- Matthew.

"Damn, I don't know what I should have done", Lantom said after he was done, "I guess that's not really true."

"You know, when I heard Maggie call me her son", Matt said with some traces of anger in his voice, "My thought was- my first thought was how stupid I'd been. That it had been in front of me for so long. And then I remembered that it had been in front of you for even longer. From-from the beginning. We've talked so much about the truth, you and I. Of my truth, God's truth.

Getting up, Matt said, "Now it seems that all those conversations were just a goddamned lie."

Putting a hand on Lantom's shoulder, he whispered, "Shame on you!"

He then patted Lantom's shoulder and walked away.

* * *

"Sorry about the mess", Hattley said to Agents Nadeem and Winn as she gestured at the plastic in her house, "My contractor promised me he would be done months ago."

She then stood on one side of the table while Nadeem and Winn took their seats.

Winn switched on his recorder and declared, "Interview with Special Agent Rahul Nadeem and Special Agent in Charge Tammy Hattley, conducted by Supervisory Special Agent Winn, FBI Office of Professional Responsibility."

"Okay, Ray, you've got our attention", Hattley said, "What's this about?"

After taking a deep breath, Nadeem said, "There's no good way for me to say this. But I believe Wilson Fisk is currently engaged in a criminal conspiracy and has manipulated the bureau into becoming his unwitting accomplice. I also have reason to believe that Fisk has corrupted an agent on his detail."

"Who?" Hattley asked.

"Dex", Nadeem said after a moment. He wanted to talk about Chase too, but he had no proof of that.

"You're referring to Special Agent Ben Poindexter?" Winn asked

"Yes, sir", Nadeem said, "And as crazy as it sounds, I think Poindexter may have perpetrated the attack at the Bulletin."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Winn asked in confusion, "Why would you think that?"

"Because while I was pursuing those suspicions yesterday", Nadeem said as he moved his coat to the side to reveal his wound from the bullet, "Dex shot me."

"Jesus Christ", Winn gasped. Hattley looked at him with an interested expression.

"Sir, OPR needs to start an internal investigation into Fisk, into Poindexter, into all of it", Nadeem said before he realized there was probably a way to get Chase under the radar too, "And for the record this was on my and Special Agent Adrian Chase's watch. We personally ran Fisk's detail. SAC Hattley did everything by the book, and this shouldn't fall on her. I take full responsibility."

"Ray, I'm sorry, but I'm placing you on administrative leave, effective immediately", Hattley immediately said.

"I understand", Nadeem said as he turned to her, "And I will cooperate fully."

He took out his badge and gun and slid them over to her.

"So what do we do next?" Nadeem asked Winn.

Winn said, "First, we call you an ambulance-"

BANG!

Blood poured from Winn's throat as the bullet shattered his wind pipe. Ray and a gasping Winn turned to look at Hattley.

She had picked up Ray's gun and shot Winn. She fired again. This time, the bullet went into Winn's head, killing him.

"No! Ray!" she said in a frightened and begging tone, "Put down the gun! Please!"

She then turned off the recorder and angrily said to Ray, "Damn you, Ray. You bring this into my house? My home? Sit down."

Ray's mind still hadn't processed what had happened. He was just staring at Winn's body, horrified.

"Sit", she commanded as she aimed the gun on him.

Ray sat down, breathing heavily, wondering what will happen now. He was horrified and shocked beyond anything. He had tried to do the right thing. And it had backfired.

Felix Manning walked in, holding an evidence package and said, "Your prints, your weapon, the recording."

As Hattley put Ray's gun and the recording into the package, Manning asked Ray, "Do I need to explain to you what this means?"

Ray still couldn't respond due to how shocked he was.

"Answer my question, please", Manning said.

"Do you understand your situation now? Ray? You get this?" Hattley asked angrily.

Turning to her, Ray finally said in a horrified whisper, "Yeah, boss. I understand."

"I'm not your boss anymore", Hattley said harshly, "Wilson Fisk and Adrian Chase are."

* * *

Maggie was bidding farewell to a kid in her orphanage who had been adopted by a family.

Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy watched from a distance. They were all worried for Matt. They wondered where he had gone.

That moment, Lantom arrived.

"Maggie", he said, making her turn towards him. He tried to say something but faltered, which was noticed by Maggie, Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy.

"What is it, Paul?" she asked.

With a sad sigh, Lantom said, "Matthew knows."

Hearing that, Maggie's eyes widened in horror and sadness. She ran to the room where Matt was. The Earth-1 trio and Elektra had not told her about him going away.

"Knows what?" Oliver asked.

Lantom turned to look at them. He didn't recognize Oliver, Slade or Roy but he knew Elektra.

"Elektra!" he gasped, "You're alive?"

"Answer his question", Elektra said firmly.

With a sigh, Lantom said, "Maggie's his mother."

All of their jaws dropped on hearing that and their eyes widened. The next thing they heard was Maggie's heartbreaking wails coming from Matt's room.

Exchanging a look with the others, Oliver slowly walked into the room. Maggie's head was on Matt's bed. She was wailing due to the shame and guilt she was feeling. Oliver slowly walked towards her and put his hand on her shoulder as a show of comfort.

He did not approve of what she had done, but he still felt it was right to offer her comfort at this time.

* * *

Matt entered the abandoned boxing club in which his father used to box. There were still old posters around there.

One of them said-  _"Creel vs. Murdock."_

Creel was the last person Jack had fought. He had refused to throw the match against Creel and so he had been shot dead.

Matt threw down his bag and sat down.

"Oh, I guess you know everything now, Matty", Jack's voice said from behind him.

"Everything I need to", Matt said, in spite of knowing this was just a hallucination, "Meh. Doesn't change anything."

He then threw away his cap.

He then started opening the lockers.

"It's a shitty way for you to find out, Matty, about your mother", Jack admitted to him.

"Yeah", Matt said as he continued what he was doing, "You should have told me."

"Maybe I promised her that I wouldn't", Jack said.

"That is no excuse", Matt scoffed.

"Yeah, I know, kid", Jack said, "But after I took that bullet, Maggie had years to tell you the truth and she didn't. That wasn't my choice, it was hers."

"You both lied. You both left", Matt said angrily as he started breaking a locker with a stick.

"I never left you", Jack protested.

"You didn't go down in that fight like you were supposed to", Matt said as he opened that locker, "Knowing they'd kill you for it."

"I did that for you", Jack said, "So you'd know what your old man is made of."

"My old man chose his ego over a lifetime with his son", Matt said with resentment, "That's what I know."

"It wasn't ego, it was living up to a code", Jack said passionately, "Being a man. It means lovin' the feel of my fist in someone else's face. It means waiting for them to hit the ground and knowing that I put them there. And, yeah, okay maybe I put that at the top of my list and maybe it cost me everything, including you. But you do the same thing."

"No, I don't", Matt protested.

"You have a code, too", Jack pointed out, "You beat the shit out of people. You tell yourself its okay because you didn't kill anyone. There is something wrong with us, Matty. It's just who we are."

"That's who you were, Dad", Matt said as he sat down and started wrapping a cloth around his fists, "I'm not like you. I don't throw fights. And I don't let everyone else suffer 'cause of some bullshit code. Not anymore. When I get to Fisk and Chase…. I'm gonna kill them."

* * *

"Excuse me, Sister Maggie? I'm sorry to bother you", Karen said as she walked up to Maggie in the church, "They told me I could find you here."

"He's gone", Maggie said as she knew who Karen was asking about, "I don't know where."

"It's a matter of life and death", Karen said, "Do you have any idea when he'll be back?"

"He won't be", Maggie said cryptically.

"I-I don't understand", Karen said in confusion, "Why? Why not?"

"He learned the truth", Maggie said with a sad sigh, "That I'm his mother."

A stunned Karen could only say, "Wow. Uh He never talked about-about you."

"I was a danger to Matthew when I gave him up", Maggie said, "Nowadays, they know a great deal about postpartum, but at the time I was convinced that I was betraying God. I hadn't yet taken my vows, but in my heart I believed I had committed an unforgivable sin. And so I replaced that sin with another. I abandoned my child."

"Why-Why did you tell him now?" Karen asked.

"I didn't", Maggie said, "He found out on his own. I wanted to tell him. When Jack was alive, I convinced myself the truth would confuse Matthew. After Jack died, I convinced myself it would do more harm than good. Finally, I just realized that I was too much of a coward. The Lord has a way. Sending the Devil of Hell's Kitchen to me now. Showing me what became of my sin. The Lord gave me another chance to make things right. And I failed, yet again."

"Yes, you did", Oliver said as he walked up to them with Elektra, Slade and Roy, "But this is not the end."

"It is", Maggie said, "Matthew knows who and what I am now. He won't be back."

"He will be", Elektra assured.

"Because he is nothing like my son", Slade said with a sad sigh.

"In spite of what you did, you're still his mother", Roy said.

"Matthew will hate you", Elektra said, "For what you did. But I know him. In the end, he will come around. He can't hate people he cares about forever."

"I just-I don't-I don't know what to say", Karen stammered.

"What can you say to someone who's scarred your friend for life?" Maggie said with self-loathing, "He must be in a lot of pain right now. When you find him, he'll need you all."

"That's just it. See, I can't really stick around", Karen said to them in a whisper, "Um Fisk knows about Matt. I just I just wanted to warn him before I run."

"Wait, Karen what're you talking about?" Oliver asked.

"I accidentally revealed to Fisk that Matt is Daredevil", Karen said guiltily.

"What happened?" Elektra asked.

"He asked me what I knew about Matt's secret life and I gave him a shocked look. That's just what he needed to know", Karen said.

"He fooled you into thinking you betrayed him", Slade said.

"Chase would've already told him", Roy revealed.

"But are you in danger?" Maggie asked Karen.

"Yeah", Karen said, "Matt's not the only one that Fisk wants dead."

"Do you have someplace to go?" Maggie asked.

"No, I was just gonna get the first bus out of town", Karen said.

"You don't need to", Oliver said, "We will protect you."

"With us around, they will think twice before trying to kill you", Slade said.

"Let us help you", Maggie said, "Trust me. The church has been helping people hide for 2,000 years. Hide here.

Give me a day to make a few calls, and you'll have shelter halfway around the world by the end of the week. Until then, stay with these four. Please, let me do something for you. For Matthew."

With a sigh, Karen accepted the offer of the five, "Yeah. Okay."

* * *

Matt was punching the boxing bag repeatedly. His cell phone then beeped.

He picked it up, "Yeah?"

"Fisk has left the hotel", Nadeem said from the other end.

"How's that even possible?" Matt asked.

"I think Dex is not the only FBI Agent he has turned", Nadeem said, "But he's taking Fisk to meet with some other crime bosses. Some kind of sit-down."

"Where?" Matt asked.

"I'll text you the address", Nadeem said, "But if you catch Fisk in the act-"

"This will be our only chance to take him down", Matt said, "Thank you, Nadeem."

The call was then cut.

* * *

Hattley had put Nadeem in a unit which comprised agents who had been compromised by Fisk and Chase. With Dex, he had then arrested all mob bosses across the city on Fisk's orders.

He had asked Hattley why she was their accomplice. Hattley had revealed that Fisk was the reason Nadeem's sister-in law had lost her health coverage when she had got cancer. So he had played Nadeem right from the start by making him desperate for the job. And she was his accomplice because he had got one of her two daughters killed and made it look like a hit-and-run. So she had then divorced her husband to keep him safe and was doing this to keep her remaining daughter alive.

Nadeem had then removed Fisk's ankle monitor and had then been forced by him to tell Matt about the meeting.

He now stood with another FBI Agent as Fisk talked to all the crime-bosses they had arrested.

"I've brought you here to offer you my protection", Fisk said to the others, "From investigations and prosecutions by the federal government."

"Bullshit", one of them said, "This is a sting."

"Hey, jury, if you can hear this on tape, I'm totally innocent. I don't even know these people", a female one said.

Another one, whose name was Rosalie Carbon asked Fisk, "How much? What's the vig?"

"Twenty percent."

One of them who was annoyed grumbled, "For Christ's sake."

"Of everything."

"I don't know how you keep that suit white with all the bullshit you pack into it", he said to Fisk, "I know what this is. We all know what this is. You want us to confess to something that buys you another month in that hotel suite you conned yourself into. No. You can count me out."

Looking at him, Fisk said out loud, "You know what to do."

Then a tall, muscular man of 6'3"" with dirty blonde hair walked out of the shadows with Prometheus, Fakedevil, Joe, Diaz and the Longbow Hunters after him.

He wore a black shirt and dark blue jeans and had a grey trenchcoat on him.

He lifted that crime-lord by the throat and looked at him with a cold, unnerving look.

And then he gave him a very hard punch in the chest. Next moment, his bloodied fist protruded from the crime-lord's back, the man's heart in his hand. He crushed the heart into a bloody smear and retracted his hand before throwing the dead crime-lord to the ground.

Everyone present gasped in horror at the strength and brutality this man possessed and some were even panting. What they did not know was that this was no man. This was Nuke Model 101. A cyborg. Made of metal. It's metal body had been covered by living tissue to make it look like a man.

And all the other dangerous killers on Fisk's side only increased their terror.

"The tax is now 25 percent", Fisk said to the horrified crime-lords.

"I gotta hand it to you, Fisk", Carbon said as she recovered from the shock, "You know how to put on a show. Just one question. Where do I drop the cash?"

* * *

Matt had snuck into the penthouse, wearing his black suit. He had switched off all the power from the electrical room.

He had realized the info Nadeem had given him had been a trap. He hid to avoid some FBI Agents looking for him.

He then opened the door to Fisk's room and walked inside, sensing everything around him. He then tapped the shoe rack and realized it was hidden door.

He pushed it, revealing a set of stairs. He walked down and heard a woman, breathing very fast due to fear.

"Are you gonna kill me?" she asked him as her heart beat faster.

"No", Matt said, "Not you."

"Fisk and Chase?" she asked.

He nodded and she gave a relieved sigh, "Oh, thank God."

"When will they be back?" Matt asked.

"Minutes", she said.

"Thank you", Matt said gratefully.

That moment, the power came back on and the monitors opened.

They showed two agents in the camera room.

"Karen Page located at the Clinton Church", one of them said, "Keep all NYPD units clear of that location until otherwise advised. Copy?"

Matt felt something was wrong on hearing that.

"What does Fisk want with Karen?" he asked her.

Looking at Matt with some fear, she said, "He wants her killed."

She looked at the monitors. The cars were returning.

"He's downstairs", she said, "There are no cameras in the bedroom."

"No, no, God", Matt muttered in frustration, anger, concern and fear before stammering, "How-How long?"

"What?" she asked, "What are-"

"How long until he gets here?" Matt asked.

"Seconds", she said and exhaling sharply, added, "If you leave, I have to tell him you were here. He'll triple security. Getting back in here will be impossible. You'll never have another chance like this."

With a sigh, Matt said, "You do what you have to do."

He then walked out, knowing where he was needed more.

* * *

Nadeem stopped the car near the Clinton Church. He was ashamed of himself for doing what he was doing. But he had no choice.

Dex, dressed as Daredevil was sitting next to him while on the backseat were Adrian in his Prometheus suit, Diaz and Nuke.

Another car was going with them which had Joe and the Longbow Hunters inside.

Turning to Nuke, Chase said, "You know what to do."

Nuke opened the door of the car and walked out, towards the church.

* * *

Lantom was giving a speech there in the Mass. Karen was among the attendees. She didn't want to attend, but he had convinced her to.

Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy were in Matt's room, discussing their next move.

"We have been called upon to question whether the people we thought were fighting for us were really monsters all along", Lantom said, "We are being told that we are not strong that we are not safe. Yet here we are. Stronger, because we will not accept that we are weak. Safer, because we will not be divided. I am proud of all of you for coming here despite your fears. And I am grateful to you, always for letting me call myself one of you."

At that moment, a tall, muscular man of 6'3" height walked inside, wearing a black shirt, dark blue jeans and a grey trenchcoat.

Lantom thought he was just another person who was going to attend the Mass.

He walked up to where Karen was sitting, having been told what she looked like.

Karen looked up at his cold, unnerving gaze, fear filling her all of a sudden.

He suddenly took out a medium-sized gun and aimed it at her face.

BANG!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How could I not end it there?
> 
> If you want to imagine someone's face on Nuke, think of a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. Because Nuke in here is inspired from Arnold's portrayal of the T-800 in the first Terminator movie.
> 
> I know in the show, Karen refused to attend the Mass but for the purpose of this story, she is. I don't think she has any idea of knowing that Fisk knows where she is.
> 
> BTW, fun MCU fact- the boxer Jack fought and defeated before being murdered was Carl Creel aka the Absorbing Man from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	16. Battle at the Church

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things at the Church do not go well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.
> 
> R.I.P Stan Lee, the inspiring Legend who brought so much joy to our lives in the form of superheroes like Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, Thor, Iron Man, Hulk, the Avengers, Daredevil, Black Panther and amused us so much with his show-stealing cameos. You will be missed. Excelsior!

Karen shrank back in her chair as the man staggered to the side on being hit by the gunshot. And then there was another gunshot. And another. A third. And a fourth. The man fell down, seemingly dead.

All the people started screaming and running around in terror.

Lantom too ran from where he was standing, trying to help the terrified people.

None of them noticed the man's fingers twitching. His eyes opened and he rose up. Seeing that, Karen snapped out of the numb state of mind she had been thrown into.

She got up and started running. Due to all the people running around, she failed to see who had shot the man.

"EVERYBODY GET DOWN!" a rough voice shouted. Due to all the frightened people's screams, Karen failed to recognize the voice.

But many people did get down on hearing that, including Karen and Lantom, as the man got up and started firing his semi-automatic around.

From behind one of the pews, a man fired a shotgun at him. That man was the one who had shot him to save Karen. The shot missed and the big man continued firing around.

Karen tried to crawl away to escape him. One of his gunshots hit a woman who had not gotten down and was still running. She fell down on Karen, dead.

The man saw the guy with the shotgun running around and fired at him. He leapt behind another pew to save himself.

So he then walked over to Karen, who had been pinned to the floor by the dead woman.

* * *

Oliver, Elektra, Slade and Roy had heard the gun-fighting and had quickly dressed up in their suits and gone out with their weapons.

They were horrified to see people running around in terror, screaming. A big man was firing a semi-automatic around. And now he stood over Karen, aiming his gun at her.

Oliver took out an arrow, intending to disarm the man.

But before he could fire, a man leapt out from behind one of the pews and fired at Karen's attacker with a shotgun.

The bullet hit him, making him stagger away. The man reloaded his shotgun and fired again, throwing him off. And like that, he fired three more times. The man was slammed against a pillar and fell down, seemingly dead again.

The four turned to look at the shotgun wielding man and immediately recognized him.

"Frank", Slade muttered.

The four and Frank Castle ran over to where Karen was now getting up.

"You okay, Karen?" Frank asked as they started helping her up.

Karen couldn't speak due to how horrified she was.

"Thank you, Frank", Oliver said sincerely.

That moment, the man's eyes opened again and he started getting up.

All six of them looked at him, horrified.

"What the hell?" Slade said. Even on Mirakuru, he did not think he had the strength, durability and healing factor to get up immediately after getting hit by so many gunshot wounds and being slammed against a pillar.

Fortunately, his gun had fallen far off this time.

The six made to run out with Karen when there way was blocked by Prometheus, Dexdevil, Joe, Diaz and the Longbow Hunters.

They had decided to come in on hearing all the gun-fighting.

"Adrian!" Oliver growled.

"Oliver", Adrian said, "I told you, I am always ten steps ahead."

The heroes backed off with Karen and glanced back to see the big man moving towards them.

That moment, Matt leapt up from behind the villains and gave a flying kick to Dexdevil, throwing him off.

The others quickly jumped off into different directions. Oliver, Slade and Roy on one side and Frank, Elektra and Karen on another.

Frank then got up and shot the big man a few more times, making him stagger away. Silencer was about to activate her device when Elektra threw a knife which cut off its straps from her wrist, making it fall on the ground.

She then leapt and charged as the three Longbow Hunters charged at her.

Oliver, Slade and Roy too charged and Adrian, Joe and Diaz moved to fight them.

Elektra deflected a dart and blocked Kodiak's shield before kicking him away. She ducked to avoid a rotatory kick from Silencer before elbowing her in a rotatory motion, making her stagger away.

Oliver ducked to avoid a swing from Adrian's sword before trying to smack him with his bow. Adrian blocked and they were both in a deadlock. Joe roared and rushed Slade to bring his sword down on him but Slade just backed off to avoid. Roy ducked to avoid a flip kick from Diaz and tried to smack him with his bow, which he backed to avoid.

Dexdevil got up and tried to attack Matt. Matt blocked, punched him twice and slammed his head on a pew. He got up again. Matt punched him twice and gave him a flip kick, throwing him down.

He got up and ran at a civilian, grabbing him to use as a hostage. But Matt leapt into the air and aiming his feet, kicked Dexdevil on the face, throwing him back again.

Oliver punched Adrian on the face before flipping him over his shoulder. Before he could strike again, Adrian raised his feet and kicked him on the face, making him stagger back.

"Why are you doing this?" Slade asked Joe.

"Because I have the strength to do what you can't", Joe said, "I am what you were supposed to be."

Joe attacked but Slade blocked and pushed him back.

Roy flip kicked Diaz on the face and then smacked him with the bow, making him stagger away.

The big man tried to get back up again but Frank hit him hard on the head with the shotgun, making his head tilt back down. He then backed away a little as the man started getting up again. As he got up, Frank fired with his shotgun. But the man suddenly snatched it from him and snapped it like a twig. Seeing that Frank jumped away and hid behind a pew, before crawling away to where that man's semi-automatic had fallen.

Dexdevil got back up. Matt tried to kick him but this time, he grabbed his leg and threw him down on some candles before punching him on the face, stunning him.

He then looked around to see all the others were still fighting. He then looked at Karen, who was standing with Lantom, helping the others get out. He threw his stick at Karen.

Karen closed her eyes, waiting for the end. But it never came. She opened her eyes and gasped in horror on seeing what had happened.

Lantom stood in front of her, the stick sticking out of him. He had jumped in the way and taken the hit meant for her. As he fell down, Karen took him into her arms sobbing.

"NO!" Matt yelled and leapt at Dexdevil, slamming him into the ground. The others had seen what had happened too.

Oliver and Adrian charged at each other. He grabbed Adrian by the waist and slammed him to the ground before punching him repeatedly.

Roy pinned Diaz to the pillar with his bow and started punching him with his normal arm.

Slade blocked all the attacks Joe was bringing down on him and kicked him away.

Elektra ducked to avoid an attack from Kodiak before grabbing him by the collar and throwing him to a corner, knocking him out. She then cut off the device on Red Dart's wrist before leaping into the air and kicking her away, knocking her out. Silencer rushed her but Elektra kicked her on the knee, bringing her down before punching her out.

Frank picked up the big man's semi-automatic and fired it on him, making him stagger away a little. Elektra leapt into the air and gave him a flying kick. Her strength made him stagger back by a few paces.

She tried to kick him in a rotatory motion but he grabbed her foot and slammed her to the ground. He tried to smash her with his foot but she rolled away.

Matt punched Dexdevil on the face repeatedly, angry at what he had done to Lantom.

"Matthew."

Matt stopped on hearing Lantom whispering to him.

"Please forgive us", Lantom said and with a last exhale, closed his eyes, never to open them again. Karen started sobbing again.

Dexdevil pushed him off and tried to punch but Matt blocked and kneed him. He then slammed him into a pillar and then on a pew before punching him repeatedly and then throwing him down.

Frank fired the semi-automatic at the man while Elektra gave him a flying kick on the back, making him stagger.

"We need to get him out of here", Elektra said, "So that he doesn't do any more damage."

Frank then ran to the back exit and fired more shots at the big man. Elektra ran up next to Frank. Matt had heard them so he was not going to interfere with whatever they had planned.

But he did say out loud, "It's not a man! It's a machine!"

"A machine?" Frank grumbled, "Oh fuck!"

Nuke had an advanced intelligence system. It had the capacity to disobey orders if it considered it was at risk. And right now, it considered the man with the skull vest and the red-suited woman were risks to it. So it ran after them instead.

They ran out of the back door and into the alley. Nuke ran after them at full speed.

They managed to spot a car with its door open. The owner had carelessly left it open and the keys inside when he had gone off. Frank and Elektra jumped behind the open door. Frank then fired the gun at a fuel tank of another car in the front, causing a small explosion and flames to go up.

He then sat in the car with Elektra next to him. He started it and backed up. That moment, Nuke leapt out from the fire and grabbed onto the car.

As Frank backed it, Nuke punched the mirror, breaking it. It wrapped its hand around Elektra's throat. Elektra grabbed its hand, trying to remove it from her throat.

As Frank backed it up, he smashed the car against another parked car. The impact threw Nuke off the car. Frank then hit the accelerator and drove the car at full speed.

The man whose car had been parked walked out of a nearby shop. He had seen the car smashing against his and Nuke falling down.

He immediately opened the door of his car to walk inside and started dialing 911. That moment, Nuke got up.

It squeezed the man with the car door before slamming his head on the car, knocking him out. It then threw him away and sat in the car. It closed the door and hit the accelerator, following Frank and Elektra.

Frank looked at the rear view mirror and saw Nuke following.

"Take the wheel!" he told Elektra.

Elektra immediately took the steering wheel while Frank got out of the window and fired at Nuke's car. Nuke steered around to avoid. The chase continued.

* * *

Back at the church, the fight continued.

Chase pushed Oliver off and s the two got up, he threw a shuriken. Oliver managed to deflect it with his bow before throwing a fletchette which Chase avoided by jumping to a side.

Slade blocked an attack from Joe and grabbing him by the shoulder, slammed him into a pillar, throwing him down.

Diaz kept trying to punch Roy who kept jumping back to avoid.

Matt lifted Dexdevil by the collar and angrily head-butted him before throwing him at a pillar. Matt tried to kick but Dexdevil rolled away to avoid.

He then threw some candles at Matt which he avoided. He then threw down a statue which Matt avoided before kicking him. Matt tried to hit again but Dexdevil grabbed his arm and flipped them both to the ground.

He then picked up some rubble to throw at Karen but Matt threw a piece of rubble at his hand, disarming him.

He then punched Dexdevil thrice and slammed him into a wooden door before flip kicking him, smashing the door behind and throwing him inside.

He then punched picked up Dexdevil and punched him twice before slamming his head on the other side, smashing it.

Adrian threw another shuriken which Oliver deflected with an arrow. He leapt at Oliver with his sword but Oliver backed to avoid before jumping into the air and kicking Adrian with both feet, sending him flying back.

Dexdevil tried hit Matt but he kicked him on the chest, sending him slamming onto a pew. Dexdevil tried to hit again but Matt grabbed his hand and elbowed him on the face before throwing him onto a pew.

Dexdevil picked up rubble to hit Matt grabbed his hand again and punched him. Dexdevil managed to hit him with some rubble, though Matt put his elbow in the way, managing to avoid major damage.

Karen was running to the door to distract Dexdevil. He threw his stick at her, though Matt leapt on him. Oliver fired an arrow at the stick. The two projectiles deflected harmlessly off each other as Karen lead all the other attendees out.

Dexdevil ripped off a small part of a pew and hit Matt, knocking him down. He then punched Matt repeatedly before Karen yelled, "Hey! I'm the one you want!"

Dexdevil picked up a necklace of beads and ripped it off before throwing them at her. She ducked to avoid but they still hit the glass, breaking it.

Chase kicked Oliver in a rotatory motion, making him stagger back. He then tried to swing his sword but Oliver blocked with his bow before punching Adrian on the face. He then grabbed him by the back of the collar and threw him down.

Karen ran upstairs. Dexdevil followed her. Matt got up but Dexdevil threw a big container on him, sending him down again.

Joe leapt at Slade and managed to punch him on the mask. He then grabbed Slade by the back of the head and slammed it on a pillar four times before Slade gave him a backwards head-butt, making him let go.

Diaz took out a gun but Roy fired an arrow, disarming him. He then leapt at Diaz and gave him a kick, throwing him off.

Dexdevil was looking for Karen upstairs when he saw Matt staggering to him. He tried to punch but Matt blocked and punched him instead.

He tried to punch again but Dexdevil grabbed him and punched him on the side before throwing him down. He then punched him on the face repeatedly. Matt now just lay on the ground, weakened.

Dexdevil picked up a pointed object and brought it down on Matt. Just before it could hit him, Karen popped out of her hiding place and hit him with a small statue of Christ, making him fall off the balcony.

"Oh, my God", Karen said as she kneeled near Matt, "Matt. Matt. Matt. Matt, you okay? You okay? Hey."

"I can't-can't let him leave", Matt stammered.

Karen looked down and saw that Dexdevil was no longer there.

"No, no, no", Karen said, "Oh, shit, no, he's gone."

* * *

Downstairs, Adrian commanded, "Fall back!"

Once again, all the villains started retreating, including the Longbow Hunters who had got back up. Diaz, like before, threw a flashbang grenade to cover their escape.

* * *

"It's okay. It's okay", Matt told Karen before losing consciousness.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey", Karen said in a scared tone as she cradled Matt's head, "Matt? Matt?"

She then started sobbing due to everything that was happening.

* * *

Nuke managed to smash its car against Frank's and Elektra's car and that smashed it into a wall, trapping it.

Elektra jumped to the back seat and opened the back door. Both of them jumped out of it. Then the saw the side stairs of a building and started running up. Nuke followed them.

The two reached up and Nuke arrived there too, ready to fight them.

Frank once again fired the semi-automatic while Elektra gave it a flying kick. It staggered back. Before it could recover, Elektra swung her sword.

The sword hit its eye and the skin near it, damaging it very badly.

She swung her sword again but Nuke grabbed it and using it as a lever, threw her away.

Frank neared him, firing more shots. Nuke grabbed the gun and pushed Frank away, throwing him down. Nuke then aimed the gun at him.

Putting the gun on Frank's face, it then pulled the trigger-

But nothing happened. The gun was now empty.

Frank then suddenly brandished a pistol and fired more shots at it.

Elektra got up at that moment. Nuke reached out with its hand, intending to snatch Frank's pistol too.

At that moment, a swinging figure hit it, sending it flying off the roof to the ground. It was someone wearing a red and blue spandex suit with a symbol of a spider on the center of it.

Spider-Man!

"Take that Terminator!" he said.

Frank and Elektra ran to the edge of the roof and looked down-

Only to see it was not there.

"You're the Punisher aren't you?" Spider-Man asked as Frank and Elektra turned to him, "I must say, not a big fan of all the kill-"

"Kid!" Frank said in a firm voice, shutting him up, "Where the hell are the Avengers?"

"Them?" Spider-Man said, "They've gone away on a mission. I'm here because someone is supposed to patrol the streets."

"When they get back", Frank said, "Tell them to put an end to Wilson Fisk's BULLSHIT!"

"Okay, okay, calm down", Spider-Man said, "I will tell them."

He then made to swing away when Elektra said, "Thanks for the help, kid."

"No problem", Spider-Man said, "It's just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man."

He then swung away while Frank and Elektra decided to regroup with the others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The shootout in the beginning was inspired by the Tech Noir scene in the first 'Terminator' movie.
> 
> So Spider-Man is here too. This was to set up something that will happen in a later chapter.
> 
> So Frank Castle returns. Daredevil Season 3 was amazing but it did hurt the Netflix corner of the MCU and Frank's character.
> 
> Frank cares for Karen like family so he would do anything to protect her. The attack on the Bulletin was highly publicized. So I just keep wondering why Frank didn't show up to help Karen after seeing that.
> 
> Of course the showrunners did not want to do any crossovers but I think they should have given a small explanation for why Frank didn't show up.
> 
> Doesn't mean I don't love Daredevil Season 3. Because it was amazing nonetheless.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	17. Narrow escapes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt, Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen narrowly try to avoid the FBI. Fisk makes a statement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

"Matt, Matt, you gotta get up", Karen said as she tried to wake him up.

"Matt", Oliver said as he walked up behind her with Slade and Roy.

"Karen? Oliver? Slade? Roy?" Matt suddenly asked as his eyes opened.

"Can you sit up?" Slade asked.

"Okay", Roy said, "We need to go."

"Where are they?" Matt asked

"They got away", Karen said regretfully, "I'm sorry, they got away."

"Father, he killed him", Matt said with a sad sigh, "Karen, he killed him."

"I'm sorry, Matt", Oliver said regretfully.

"I'm sorry, but you gotta run", Matt told Karen, "Cops are outside, you need to go."

"No", Karen said, "I'll stay here and tell the police everything."

"Karen, the man in my suit, his name is Ben Poindexter", Matt said, "He's an FBI Agent. He works for Fisk and Chase. So does Agent Nadeem."

"If they find you, they'll kill you", Slade said.

* * *

Later- Matt, Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen ran deeper into the church to hide. Matt did a praying gesture and sealed a door before walking downstairs.

"I'm sorry", Karen said regretfully, "I'm so sorry."

"Why didn't you run?" Roy asked her.

"Run? How could I run?" Karen asked incredulously.

"God. Karen, if you get caught, all of this was for nothing", Matt said in an annoyed tone.

"Crypt gate is locked! FBI team is on the scene. Fall back."

All of them clearly heard the FBI Agents.

"It won't hold them forever", Oliver said as Matt walked to the basin, "They'll be back."

"Matt, you're right", Karen said, "You're right, it's my fault. I deserved the baton, not Father Lantom. I should never have come here. But Fisk fooled me into thinking I betrayed you."

"That's what this is about?" Matt asked as he put the towel under the tap and then rubbed it on his face, "Oh, God. Karen, I had them. I just gave up my one shot to come here to save you."

"What do you mean, you had them?" Karen asked.

"I was in his penthouse", Matt said, "Waiting for them. That was it. It was the moment."

"What were you going to do, Matthew?" Slade asked.

"Shh!" Matt shushed them, "He's back. Poindexter is upstairs, and he's with Nadeem."

There was a burial vault which said Edward Cleary Cass while another one said Michael Myers. As the Feds started sawing the sealed door, Matt and Karen went into the Edward Cleary Cass vault while Oliver and Roy got into the Michael Myers vault. There was a closet at the corner. Slade quickly went into it.

The Feds arrived and scanned the area but didn't find them. The Edward Cleary Cass vault had Matt's blood on it. Poindexter almost spotted it but Maggie stepped in the way and prevented him from seeing it.

They all went away as the five got out from their hiding places.

"They're gone", Matt said as he sat down, "I guess we'll just wait here until they leave. By the way, what did you mean Fisk tricked you? Why are Fisk and Chase hunting you?"

"Had a plan", Karen admitted, "Went to go see him."

"You went to see Fisk?"

Matt couldn't even hide the concern and incredulousness in his voice.

"Yeah, I thought maybe I could provoke him, turn his emotions against him", Karen admitted.

"To what end?" Matt asked.

"Make him attack me in front of the FBI", Karen admitted with a sigh.

"Jesus, Karen", Matt and Oliver said simultaneously.

"Yeah", Karen said as she thought about her stupidity, "Don't worry, it didn't work. He caught me off guard, asked me how long I'd known your secret. I swear I tried, but he just-he read it in my face. Then I realized he was just tricking me."

"You tried to outsmart Fisk? Provoke him into making a mistake?" Slade asked incredulously, "Him and Chase are very like-minded people. Mistakes are made very rarely on their side."

"Fine, okay, right", Karen said, "You're right. I was an idiot. Sorry."

"No, you were brave", Matt assured her.

"Anyway, he didn't take the bait", Karen said.

"What was the bait?" Roy asked.

"I told him a secret of my own", Karen said.

"What secret?" Oliver asked.

"You remember that friend he had that got shot? Uh Wesley?"

Matt nodded.

"I killed him."

All four of them looked at her in shock. She had killed James Wesley?

"That's why he sent that big man and Poindexter after me", Karen said regretfully as she tried to hold back tears, "I was stupid and - and reckless, and now Father Lantom and other people are dead because of it. Because of- because of me."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Matt asked in concern.

"I don't know", Karen said, "You-You always, uh, treated me like I was innocent. That was nice. It was nice that you thought of me like that."

"Karen, holding such things inside destroy you slowly", Oliver counselled her.

"What were you gonna do to Fisk and Chase?" Karen then asked him.

"Kill them", Matt said as everyone looked at him in shock, as they had never thought him capable of crossing this line, "Your turn to judge me."

"No", Karen said, "No, I'm not."

"If you think they need to be put down because they will never stop, go for it", Oliver said, "But if you're doing this to satisfy any dark desires inside you, don't."

"I will do the deed", Slade said, "You don't need any more darkness inside you than you already have."

"Uh, it makes me sad for you", Karen said to him.

"It has to be done, Karen", Matt said.

"Okay, you're gonna have to listen to me here", Karen said in a concerned tone as she walked over to him, "Okay, listen to me. Okay, I never told you why I left Vermont, right? Why I left home."

She then took a deep breath and said, "Okay, see, there was a car crash. And um, I killed my brother, uh, because I was I was high - and I was drunk and I was angry-"

"Jesus, Karen."

"-and I shouldn't have been driving, and it changed everything. No matter what I do there is no atoning for that. Okay? There is no way to come back from it."

"I understand where you're coming from, Karen", Roy said sympathetically, "I was once given a drug that increased my strength but drove me crazy. And I killed a cop. The only way I can try to atone for that is be who I am."

"What if it is the way back? For me?" Matt asked, "I can't let Fisk go."

"Killing anyone, even Fisk", Oliver said, "It will change everything that you feel about yourself. It will rip away a piece of your soul. And you won't be satisfied. You will want more of it. And eventually, a day will come when you will be a completely different person."

* * *

"For the past two years, ever since his unjust conviction on racketeering charges, our client has maintained his innocence and fought to clear his good name", Donovan said to the booing crowd which also contained reporters and photographers, "One hour ago, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the conviction of Wilson Fisk. Having seen the proof that they were wrong, the Department of Justice will not be going forward with charges. As of tonight, we are proud to announce that justice has prevailed and Wilson Fisk is once again a free man."

The booing still continued. Fisk, who now wore a black coat over his white suit, walked towards the mikes and addressed the booing crowd, "I know that most of you find this difficult to accept. That's only because you've been manipulated poisoned into believing the news media's fake story that I am evil, that I am a criminal."

The booing now stopped and everyone tried to hear what Fisk was trying to say.

"Quite the opposite is true", Fisk continued saying to the crowd who had now lent him their ears, "Because I challenge the system because I've told the truth and tried to make this city a better place, the people in power decided to tear me down to tear me down with false allegations. They sent someone to frame me. Daredevil. The killer who's now showing his true colors, who has tried to murder people in newspaper offices and churches attacking our sacred institutions with his accomplices, this Throwing Star Killer and several other people. Believe me. Daredevil is our true public enemy."

* * *

Nuke had broken into a room of a third class hotel and was washing its damaged eye in the washroom. It then took a pointed object and slowly with a lot of care, removed that eye before throwing it into the basin. It then wiped the blood that was leaking out of the living tissue.

It looked at the mirror. With the human eye gone, the red optic underneath could be seen. Fortunately, Nuke had stolen sunglasses from a store. It put on the shades and looked at itself in the mirror. With the shades covering the optic, it looked like a normal man again.

"Hey, what's there inside?" the janitor asked as he banged on the door, "You got some dead cat in there or what?"

Nuke had some responses for people that bothered it. It chose the one that it was sure was the most insulting.

In a heavy, cold and neutral voice, it said, "Fuck you asshole."

The cleaner went off, fuming. Nuke then lifted the bedsheets and picked up the stolen guns it had put under it. It then went out through the window, intending to return to follow whatever Fisk asked it to do next.

* * *

"It's not safe for you to come out yet", Maggie said to Matt, Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen as they hid inside the room.

"Yeah, we know", Matt said as he got up and sat on the bed, "I can hear 'em."

"I can come back with food, but in the meantime, you should get cleaned up", Maggie said to them as she started taking out some clothes from a bag, "We have fresh clothes. Donations for the poor."

"Thank you, Sister", Oliver said sincerely with Slade, Roy and Karen nodding.

"Uh, Sister for what it's worth, I'm so sorry", Karen said regretfully as she helped Maggie take out the clothes, "I shouldn't have come here."

"This is not your fault", Maggie assured.

"Father Lantom didn't deserve this", Karen said.

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life", Slade said regretfully in a counselling manner.

"Few of us get what we deserve", Maggie agreed before holding out some clothes to Matt.

"These should fit you", she said but Matt just walked past her.

"I'll come back as soon as I can", Maggie said as she started walking away, "You'll be safe here."

"No, we won't", Matt said as he turned around, "They brought in search dogs."

Maggie went out and managed to make the Feds to go over to the orphanage to check.

"They're taking the dogs next door", Matt said to everyone, "Buys us some time."

He then took off his shirt to change into the one Maggie had given him, revealing his scars.

"Jesus, Matt", Karen said in horror.

"I get the feeling", Oliver said to Matt as he had many scars on himself too.

"Couldn't put it on in front of her?" Karen asked, "You know, something just kinda hit me. Watching you wall yourself off from her."

"You all know?" Matt asked.

"Uh, yeah", Oliver said, "She told us."

"Said she felt ashamed about what she did", Roy said.

"And that everyone you ever cared about left you", Karen said.

"Can we not do this now?" Matt requested.

"Is that why you - insist on doing everything alone?" Karen asked.

"I don't insist-"

"Pushing me, Slade, Roy, Elektra, Foggy and Karen away", Oliver added.

"- I'm not", Matt said, "I told you, I'm tryin' to protect you"

"I think you're trying to protect yourself", Karen said.

"You all wanna talk about this right now?" Matt asked incredulously, "There are people tryin' to kill us, and you wanna-"

"Just shut up for a second, Matthew", Slade said as he wanted Matt to listen to whjat they were trying to say.

"Look, I was never gonna leave you up there, and I'm not leaving you now", Karen said, "Neither will Foggy, Oliver, Slade, Roy or Elektra. Me and Foggy did treat you badly and we are sorry for that. But you've been an asshole to him too. And despite that, he'd still follow you over a cliff."

With a sigh, Matt finally said, "Yeah. Okay."

"So, what, you agree?" Karen asked.

"That could actually work", Matt said.

"I don't get it", Karen said in confusion, "What could work?"

* * *

Later, Matt crouched next to the cross on the top of Clinton Church with Oliver, Slade and Roy standing next to him. Foggy Nelson arrived.

* * *

"Agent Nadeem, I'm here for my client", Foggy said to Nadeem.

"- Your – Client", Nadeem said in confusion.

That moment, Maggie stepped out with Karen who quickly put her hands behind her back.

"Don't shoot! She's unarmed", Maggie said frantically.

"This is why I'm here", Foggy said, "To surrender my client."

"Good", Nadeem said.

"To the NYPD."

All the Feds stood there in complete shock.

"Karen Page, you are under arrest", Brett Mahoney said as he walked up to them with other cops, "Cuff her."

"What the hell are you doing?" Dex asked as he walked up to them, "She's ours, Detective."

"Like hell", Mahoney scoffed.

"She's a federal suspect", Dex argued.

"She's a suspected accomplice to murder", Mahoney pointed out, "That's state law."

"And she's here to surrender to the NYPD", Foggy added.

"Shut up", Nadeem said to him.

Foggy tried to say, "I'm saying, as the only attorney here, - I could help clear –"

"Put a sock in it, Nelson", Mahoney told him, "These feds know the law. She's our suspect. They can file a writ and maybe talk to her later."

"I will not let you take her", Dex said as he walked up to Mahoney.

"You and what army?" Mahoney scoffed.

"Hey, we're on the same team here" Nadeem tried to diffuse the situation before turning to Mahoney, "Detective, a word?"

"What part of "our crime scene" do you not understand?" Dex asked Mahoney.

"Ben, we're all cut up about what happened here", Nadeem said to him before turning to Mahoney, "A word. Please."

Nadeem and Mahoney walked to a corner.

"You need to stand your people down", Mahoney said to Nadeem.

"Listen to me very carefully", Nadeem whispered, "If we take Karen Page into custody, she'll be dead before she reaches HQ."

Mahoney was about to turn to the Feds when Nadeem said, "No, don't react. Just get her the hell away from us. We clear?"

"Crystal."

They walked back to the others.

"Detective Mahoney will take custody of the suspect", Nadeem said.

"Bullshit!" Dex protested as Mahoney and the N.Y.P.D. lead a smirking Karen away with Foggy following.

"We'll have her back in an hour", Nadeem said, "Hattley will pull strings."

"No", Dex said as he tried to go after them.

"You can't kill her here anyway", Nadeem said as he pushed him back.

"You messed up, Ray", Dex said as he gave him a threatening glare, "You really, really messed up."

Dex then walked away, leaving a very tense Nadeem behind.

* * *

On the top, Matt heard the whole thing and said to the others, "I think Nadeem is in trouble."

* * *

Later- Matt, Oliver, Slade and Roy were met by Foggy and Karen on a rooftop. Mahoney had let Karen go as he had now himself seen how the FBI was in Fisk's hands.

Frank and Elektra arrived there too.

"You two all right?" Matt asked them.

"Yeah we are", Elektra said.

"Though that machine was a huge pain in the ass", Frank grumbled, "It escaped."

He then turned to Karen and asked, "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah", Karen said to him, "I am. Thank you for looking out for me."

"No problem", Frank said.

"Good to see you, Frank", Slade said.

"Good to see you too, Slade", Frank said.

"So it looks like you needed my help after all", Foggy said.

"Yeah", Matt said, "Yeah, I did, Foggy. You're right."

"Do you have any idea how much life has sucked for Karen and me while you were off doin' your own thing?" Foggy asked.

"No, but I'm sorry, Foggy", Matt said before turning to the Earth-1 trio and Elektra, "You all too. Maybe I was wrong to-to push you away."

"Okay, it's insanely hard to fight with you if you keep agreeing with me", Foggy said, making everyone chuckle.

"I think he doesn't want to fight now", Oliver said.

"Look, the way I've treated you, the way I've treated you all", Matt said regretfully, "You've deserved better."

"Yes, we did", Foggy said.

"Yes, you did", Matt agreed.

"But we should've treated you better too when we found out your secret", Foggy said regretfully.

"Okay, so where do we go from here?" Karen asked.

"I don't want to leave you, but I can't ask you to be accomplices to what I have to do now", Matt told Foggy and Karen.

"What does that mean?" Foggy asked.

"Um It means that, uh, Matt's gonna kill Fisk", Karen explained.

"Adrian Chase beating the hell out of you really did mess up your head", Foggy said.

"I actually agree with him", Frank said.

"Frank's agreeing with you", Foggy pointed out.

"I think it is a better option", Elektra said.

"We put him in prison, Foggy", Matt reminded him, "Look what happened."

"It's not gonna be the same this time", Foggy argued, "They're gonna throw him in some supermax hole-"

"Come on."

"- where he can't compromise anybody."

"I know you're not that naïve", Matt said.

"It's called having faith in the system", Foggy said, "Something you used to have."

"The reality is, Foggy", Oliver said, "The system can be used by rich, powerful people, twisted into something they want. People like Fisk end up corrupting the law so much that they're above it."

"That's the bullshit that people like Fisk want you to believe", Foggy argued, "Nobody's above the law. The only thing powerful enough to take down scumbags like him is the law."

"Your idealistic beliefs are bullshit, Foggy", Slade said, "Like Oliver said, Fisk has twisted the law into something that protects him."

"Federal law, maybe, but we can build a state case that even Blake Tower can't deny, force him to take it to the grand jury", Foggy argued.

"Fisk and Chase have been ten steps ahead of us at every turn", Matt pointed out, "You really think they're gonna allow that to happen?"

"They would try to stop this even if they're dead", Roy commented.

"Hey, you're right", Karen said, "You're all right. Maybe just hear him out."

"Fine", Matt said, "I'm telling you, it's not gonna work. You want to give the law another try, sure, I'm all ears."

"Simple", Foggy said as he explained his plan, "Step one, we work together. Step two, we come up with a plan. And step three, we execute that plan."

"Very nice plan", Oliver commented, "Wonder who told you these tips."

"That's genius", Matt agreed, "Come up with that by yourself?"

"So I'm still working out the details", Foggy said.

"What about this? What about we find ourselves another witness?" Karen said, "Someone who will flip on Fisk and luckily, even Chase. But unlike Jasper Evans, we keep 'em alive this time."

"Someone who knows the details of Fisk's criminal operation who has nothing to lose", Foggy said, "Okay?"

"No", Matt said, "No, we find someone who has everything to lose."

"Are you thinking about the person I'm thinking about?" Oliver asked.

As Matt nodded, Oliver said, "Yeah, he does need our help."

* * *

Nadeem had arrived home and frantically made Seema and Sami pack up their stuff. They were now cautiously walking downstairs, Nadeem in the front. He had his gun drawn.

He saw the FBI vehicles outside the window.

"Stop", he said to them, "This way."

An agent was there. Nadeem shot him and he was down. Seema gasped.

"Take Sami in the bathroom and lie down in the tub, now", Nadeem said to Seema and Sami who immediately complied.

He engaged in a gunfight with another agent before both of them took cover. He fired again before taking cover behind another pillar as the agent continued firing.

Nadeem ran upstairs while dodging the gunshots. There, he reloaded his gun. He looked down. The agent was walking upstairs too.

Suddenly, he was grabbed and pulled down. It was Matt in his black suit. He punched the agent repeatedly on the face before wrapping his feet around his neck and hitting him with his stick, knocking him out.

Another arrived when Oliver fired at him, disarming him of his weapon. Before he could react, Oliver punched him before smacking his feet with the bow, making him drop on his knees. Oliver then smacked his face with his bow, knocking him out.

Another arrived but Slade grabbed his head from behind and slammed it against the wall, knocking him out.

As two more arrived, Roy jumped down and punched him on the face with his metal arm, knocking him out. Elektra suddenly grabbed the other one and flipped him on the ground before kicking him on the face, knocking him out.

Another arrived when a gunshot hit him on the shoulder, putting him down. It was Frank.

Nadeem cautiously walked down, gun raised.

"Obviously, we're here to help you", Slade said to him.

"I sold you out to Fisk and Chase", Nadeem said guiltily.

"I know you didn't want to", Matt said.

"But I did", Nadeem said, "So maybe you're here because you wanna be the one that kills me before Fisk and Chase get around to it."

"We're not so petty, Agent Nadeem", Oliver said.

"If we're gonna get your family someplace safe, you're gonna have to trust us", Matt said.

"I can't trust anybody", Nadeem said.

"Well, we trust you", Roy said.

"Yeah, we do", Frank said too.

"You saved Karen Page's life tonight", Matt said as he took off his mask, with the others doing the same, "So we owe you one."

Nadeem looked at them all in shock and disbelief. Matt Murdock?! Frank Castle?! And the three men who had accompanied Karen Page to the penthouse when she had visited him. The woman he did not know. But they were here to help him! And something inside him told him that they were going to save him and his family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy! Fisk is so manipulative that everyone lent him their ears, like everyone did to Mark Antony in 'Julius Caesar.'
> 
> Nuke has no concept of politeness.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	18. One last shot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The good guys try the legal way to nail Fisk one last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Wilson Fisk stood on the rooftop with Adrian Chase and Felix Manning.

They looked at a helicopter that was descending from the sky.

"Sir?" Manning asked.

"What?" Fisk asked him.

"Nadeem escaped", Manning said, "He's in the wind."

"Well then, you better find him, Manning", Chase said to him in an intimidating whisper, which did intimidate him.

"Nuke is back too", he said.

"I have nothing to ask it for now", Fisk said.

Chase then lead Manning away as the helicopter landed and out came Vanessa. She wore a black coat over her white dress.

She looked as beautiful as she had when Fisk had last seen her. Just as lovely and graceful. The part of Fisk that had been slumbering for over a year, as if it was in a coma, woke up again at the sight. Fisk felt the emotion that had escaped him for a while. Love! Pure, unconditional love.

The two now stood within inches of each other.

With a loving smile, she said, "Hello, Wilson."

The two then slowly hugged each other and stayed that way, not letting go, as if afraid it would separate them forever again. But as long as they were with each other, no power in the world could come between them.

* * *

Love was blind. But the one working against the lovers was also blind coincidentally. Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy, Frank and Foggy lead Nadeem, Seema and Sami into Mahoney's home with his help.

"Thank you, Mrs. Mahoney", Foggy said gratefully.

"Y'all ain't the only ones haunted by Wilson Fisk", she said.

* * *

Everyone had now decided to follow Foggy's plan. The plan was that he and Matt will represent Nadeem as his lawyer and he will expose Wilson Fisk and everyone else. Foggy managed to convince Blake Tower to sit with them and told him he would drop out of the race and even endorse him if he did this.

"Blake Tower", Foggy introduced, "Special Agent Ray Nadeem."

"We've met", Tower said.

"Before we begin, some ground rules", Matt said as the three sat down, "Our client will speak to you under terms of use immunity. He does not waive his Fifth Amendment rights."

"Special Agent, I should advise you that Misters Nelson and Murdock have their own agendas in this case", Tower advised him, "Conflicts of interest are not something you want in legal counsel."

Nadeem looked at them and said, "I trust them."

"Suit yourself", Tower said, "Mr. Nelson played his biggest and last card to get me here. So, what are you going to tell me?"

"He's going to tell you that Wilson Fisk has had people murdered, blackmailed federal law enforcement personnel", Matt explained to Tower, "And is currently taxing New York's criminals in exchange for protection from prosecution."

"And your client has personally witnessed these acts?" Tower asked.

"He did", Foggy said, "And he's prepared to testify."

"Now, before I agree to that, Agent Nadeem, why are you coming forward now?" Tower asked.

Nadeem then saw Tower giving him a pointed look.

"I hurt people", Nadeem said with a guilty sigh, "My pride hurt people. And I need to make that right again."

After a tense moment of silence, Tower finally said, "Okay. I accept the terms of use immunity. Tell me what you know."

Nadeem then narrated the entire thing right there to Tower.

"After the attack on my home I secured my family and came directly here", he finished.

"This is unbelievable" was all Blake could say.

"Believe it", Foggy said.

"I can convene a special grand jury today", Tower said, "Probably by 4:00 p.m."

"Great", Matt said, "Our offer is straightforward. Agent Nadeem's testimony in exchange for full immunity."

"He just confessed to being an accessory in how many homicides?" Tower asked pointedly as he got up.

"Cases you would never make in a million years without our client's testimony", Foggy pointed out as he got up.

"If this was a larceny case, or corruption, maybe", Tower said, "But he's a federal law enforcement officer", he gestured at Ray, "That looked the other way while class A felonies, homicides, were committed. Two men were murdered in front of him, and he never said a damn word."

"He didn't say a thing, because he was afraid for his family", Matt argued as he got up, "Fisk tried to kill them all last night, and Agent Nadeem is here today, telling you everything. Can you say you'd do the same thing, Mr. Tower?"

Tower had no answer.

"Our offer expires when you walk out that door", Matt said, "Full immunity, or we're advising our client to run for his life."

"Five years", Tower said finally, "On each count."

"No."

You can't do murder and walk."

"Come on, Blake, no jail time", Foggy requested, "You'll be the DA who took down Wilson Fisk, and the next stop on the Tower train is the governorship."

"Five years, on all counts", Tower said, "Final offer."

Matt put his chair back in place and holding out his hand said, "Thank you for coming by, Mr. Tower."

Tower walked away without shaking his hand, causing Matt to withdraw.

"Wait", Nadeem said, making Tower freeze in his tracks, "He's right. I did the crime. And I need to keep my family safe."

As Tower turned to look at them, he said, "I'll take it."

Looking at Matt and Foggy, he said, "It's okay. I'm good with this."

"Let me make a call", Tower said as he walked out.

* * *

Later, Nadeem called his son via the telephone in the gym, "Sami, there's something I need to talk to you about. You might hear some stories about me, some stuff that sounds like I did bad things. No, I didn't do them. But I didn't stop them from happening, either. And that's just as bad", he got very emotional and held back tears, "I was trying to keep you and your mom safe. That's all that matters to me. I don't care what people say about me, all I care about is what you say about me, and that you get to live the life that you want. I love you, kid."

* * *

Next day, Ray was sitting in the back of a van with Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy and Frank as it drove to the courthouse.

"I stepped off the path for a few weeks, and it destroyed my life", Nadeem said to them, "But you all, you step on and off the line all the time too."

"I have only one path", Slade said regretfully, "And I will stay on it."

"I am the lucky one who gets the best of both ways", Elektra commented with a smirk.

"I just returned to this life for this", Roy said, "I know I can't have it both ways."

"I can't either", Frank said, "So I will just have to continue like this."

"It complicates my life", Matt said.

"Mine too", Oliver said, "Right now, I'm trying to have it both ways. But a day will come when I will have to choose one."

"But your friends know who you are and what you do", Nadeem said.

"My life almost got them killed", Matt said.

"My life got some people I cared about killed", Oliver said with a sad sigh as he thought of Tommy, Moira and Laurel.

"We can't have it both ways either", Matt said.

"I'm sorry", Nadeem said to Oliver before saying to Matt, "I messed up, and no matter what happens today, I don't know if my wife's ever coming back. But all your friends keep coming back. How do you hold onto them?"

After a moment of silence, Matt said, "It's not me. It's them."

That moment, their vehicle stopped. Another car nearby was honking its horn repeatedly. That moment, Matt realized something was off.

He heard guns being loaded and yelled, "GET DOWN!"

All of them got down as the van was dented by gunfire from all sides.

"GET US OUT OF HERE!" Nadeem yelled to the driver.

Matt heard his heart stop beating.

"He's dead", Matt said.

"Fisk!" Oliver grumbled, "He knows about this."

"Take out your weapon", Matt told Nadeem, who complied.

"Fire through here", Matt said as he pointed to a hole.

Nadeem did and it hit someone.

Turning to Frank, he said, "You fire through those two holes."

Frank fired through them and it hit two people.

Ray then opened the door and ran out with his gun raised.

"Ray!" Slade called out but he didn't listen.

The side door opened as a corrupt agent aimed at them. But Matt was close to him. He punched him, elbowed him and slammed his head against the interior of the truck, knocking him out.

Ray saw one of the men Frank had shot groaning on the ground. As he moved towards him, someone snuck up on him. Oliver leapt out of the van's front mirror, shattering it. He leapt onto the agent and pinned him to the ground before punching him out.

The others got out of the van.

"You all pretend to lead me out of here", Matt said, "I will help you all."

As they 'lead' him forward, he said, "There's two in front of us."

The two men tried to fire but Frank and Ray gunned them down.

Matt then heard some keys rattling and an alarm beeping.

"All right", he said, "Up ahead, there's a way out. This way."

They then walked between some cars when Matt said, "Two o' clock."

As someone tried to fire at them from there, Elektra threw a knife which hit his throat, killing him.

Matt leapt at another person and slammed him into the ground. He then picked him up and slammed him on the mirror of a car, cracking it. He then dragged him down as the woman inside gasped while the pop music played over the car stereo. She saw Matt straightening his walking stick and wondered how a blind man could fight.

Oliver punched out another agent before snatching his gun and smacking another with it, knocking him out too. Slade slammed one on a car, knocking him out too.

Roy flipped to avoid being smacked by one's gun before sweeping his feet from under him and then kicking him out.

Two more tried to fire but Frank and Ray shot them down. They crouched behind a car as Matt said, "Bus. Take the bus."

They ran into the bus and hid inside as Matt whispered, "Wait for my cue."

An armed man passed the bus.

"Hello?" Matt called out like an actual blind man, "Hello? What's happening? What's happening out there? Hello? Hello?"

One arrived from the back door but Frank grabbed him and punched him hard before shooting at his feet, putting him down. Frank then shot him on the head and he was dead.

Another tried to enter from the front door but Oliver grabbed his gun and punched him before slamming his head against the bus, knocking him out.

As another walked in, Matt smacked him in the abdomen with his stick before smacking his legs, putting him down. Before he could get up, Matt smacked him on the face and he was out.

"Let's go", he said.

They walked towards the car Matt had heard.

"Oh shit!" Matt said on realizing what it was, "It's a cab."

"So what?" Oliver asked.

"I think I know", Frank muttered.

"Would love to hear about it", Elektra said with a smirk.

"No time to waste", Slade reminded.

"Yeah, so let's go", Roy said.

"I'll drive", Nadeem said.

They then drove to the courthouse.

* * *

"Hey", Karen said as she ran up to Foggy, "Where are they?"

"Late", Foggy said, "Why?"

"There's been an attack", Karen said as she panted, "People got shot a few blocks from here."

"Oh, shit", Foggy cursed.

"They're locking down the building", Tower said as he walked up to them, "I need to call my office."

"Hey."

They turned to see Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy, Frank and Ray walk in.

"We're here", Oliver said.

"What the hell happened?" Tower asked.

"Fisk knows he's going to testify", Slade said.

Tower tried to ask Ray, "Are you in any condition to-"

"Absolutely, yeah", Ray said as he panted.

"Let's go", Matt said as they lead him to the court room.

"Okay, here's the deal", Foggy said, "After you testify, Tower will take you for arraignment-"

"Then we'll bail you out", Matt finished.

"What about my family?"

"Spoke with Seema", Karen said, "They'll be on a flight to Delhi in the morning."

"It's not forever", Matt said, "Just until we get Fisk put away. And you'll get to say goodbye."

Ray said to them gratefully, "I don't know how to thank you-"

"Don't", Matt interrupted.

"Just go get Fisk", Oliver said.

Ray nodded and went inside.

* * *

The Bailiff later asked him, "You do affirm that all the testimony that you are about to give in the case now before the court will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? This you do affirm under the pains and penalties of perjury?"

Ray looked around at everyone in the courtroom. He knew this was the right thing to do.

"I do."

* * *

"You ready for this?" Ellison asked Karen.

"Uh", Karen sighed, "No."

"Okay, let's go. Come on", Ellison said.

They stood in front of the entire media.

"Hi, I'm Karen Page", she said as they all surrounded her, "I'm here to make a statement."

"Why didn't Daredevil and the Throwing Star Killer kill you?"

"Let her speak."

"We have all been lied to", Karen said to all of them, "All right? We've been manipulated by a sociopath who doesn't care about the truth or about who he hurts or about anyone other than himself. Last night, Wilson Fisk tried to have me killed because I know the truth."

Karen exchanged a look with Ellison, who had a proud gleam in his eye.

"The man who was wearing the Daredevil suit is not the real Daredevil", she continued, "He is an impostor who is helping Wilson Fisk take back control of New York's criminal underworld. At this moment, a grand jury is hearing testimony-"

* * *

"You seeing this?" an agent asked Dex as they both watched it on TV.

Dex simply watched it, no expression on his face.

* * *

"Okay", Tower said as he walked out with Nadeem, "Your client was very convincing. Keep him here until the indictment comes in."

"Don't worry", Foggy said, "We'll hold up our end."

"Good", Tower said, "I'm counting on it."

"Thank you, sir", Matt said as he held out his hand.

Tower shook it and walked off as Oliver also said, "Thank you."

"You okay?" Foggy asked

Ray adjusted his tie and said, "For a guy who's about to send his family away and go to prison?"

With a sigh, he said, "Yeah, I guess so."

"You did good, Ray", Matt complimented.

"You heard everything through the wall, didn't you?" Ray asked, "You know that's kind of creepy?"

"Try magic", Oliver said.

"Or resurrections", Elektra added.

"I heard a man standing up to Fisk", Matt assured him, "Your son will hear the same thing. And it'll mean a lot to him."

"I didn't know if we could get this done today, but we did", Ray said.

"No you did", Matt said, "So, thank you."

"You're a brave man, Agent Nadeem", Slade said respectfully.

"And we would like to apologize for what we said to you when we first met", Roy said.

"It's okay", Nadeem said, "So, what now?"

"Hopefully, you'll serve out your sentence in a minimum security prison", Foggy said.

"Will I do the whole term?" Ray asked.

"My guess is you won't serve the whole five", Foggy assured him, "Hopefully. Good behavior, you never know."

Matt then heard someone speaking from the other side of the wall. What he was speaking made Matt's blood run cold.

"Willie Young, 789 West 144th Street. Sara Torres, 612 East 78th Street."

"What the hell?" a female juror said in shock, "That's my address."

"Tom McGuinness, 707 Lovell Ave", he continued speaking, "I'm sorry, they made me memorize them."

"Oh, no", Matt cursed.

"Matthew? What's wrong?" Elektra asked in concern.

With a sharp exhale, Matt said, "The jurors. Fisk got to them."

* * *

Tower said on the news, "At this time, the grand jury has elected not to indict Wilson Fisk, but this office, under my leadership, will pursue every lead, every piece of evidence that leads us to uncovering the truth, wherever we may find it."

Fisk looked at the news channel and smirked.

The news anchor said, "We'll continue to cover this breaking news story as events unfold."

* * *

"Karen Page, this all started with you, didn't it?" a reporter asked the retreating Karen.

""Started"? What do you mean?" Karen asked.

"You leaked the grand jury story, and it was all a lie."

"No, it's not a lie."

"Is it a desperate attempt to boost readership for the failing Bulletin?" a man asked.

"Screw you, Jerry", Ellison said, "What's Fisk paying you, anyway?"

"Get out of here", he said to Karen.

The two of them ran off to his car.

* * *

Everyone tried to convince Ray to not give up but he was broken now. Everyone except Foggy went off to find Tower.

"Fisk is unstoppable", Ray said as he washed his face, "My family's never going to be safe."

"Don't talk like that, Ray", Foggy said, "I'm sorry."

"No", Ray said as he rose up, "I'm sorry."

He then punched Foggy out.

* * *

Later, Ray walked into his house. He looked at the camera. He knew that Fisk was watching so he gave a defiant smirk before opening the door and walking in.

Inside, he looked at old photos of him, his wife and his son. He lovingly touched a picture of his and Seema's wedding and then touched another of Sammy.

He then switched on his phone and started recording a video message, "Hey, beautiful. It's me. I'm home."

He turned the phone to the picture of their wedding and said, "You remember our wedding vows? "I love you more than life itself." I still do."

He then turned it to Sami's photo and said emotionally, "And, Sami, your name means "elevated." And that's what you did for me. Made my life better in the most unexpected ways. Elevate your mom now."

* * *

"An update, please, Mr. Manning", Fisk said to him, "And speak freely. I will no longer keep anything from Vanessa."

"Very good, sir", Manning said, "Agent Nadeem has been located. His testimony to the grand jury remains sealed and inadmissible but given its public nature, we should weigh the benefits of keeping him alive."

"Force Nadeem to stand trial for the murder of Agent Winn", Fisk said to Manning, "Turning the FBI against him and discrediting him in the press."

"My thoughts exactly, sir", Manning said.

"Wilson, what does Agent Nadeem know about your business?" Vanessa asked.

"A considerable amount", Fisk said.

"And is he determined to find ways to hurt you?" she asked, "To hurt us?"

"Yes."

"Don't you think it would be safer to remove the threat?" she asked him.

With a sigh, Fisk said, "Yes, I do."

"Oh", Chase said with a smirk as he walked in, "Very nice to see partners who actually support each other. My wife didn't support me the way you do to Mr. Fisk. You're very lucky to have her, Wilson."

"Thank you, Mr. Chase", Vanessa said with a smirk, "If Agent Poindexter is useful, perhaps he can help us with this problem."

Turning to Manning, she asked, "You'll let him know, won't you?"

"Yes, ma'am", Felix said before walking out.

* * *

Ray stood outside his house, a bottle in his hand. Hearing footsteps, he turned around.

"I hoped it'd be you", he said to Dex.

"Hi, Ray", Dex said to him, "Come on inside. Let's talk."

"Come on, Dex. We both know you're a better liar than that", Nadeem scoffed as he sipped his drink, "You want a private place to kill me."

"You're in a tough spot, Ray", Dex said, "I get that. It sounds hard. Really hard."

"When they're done with you, they'll bury you, too", Ray pointed out, "You know that, right?"

"I'm doing fine", Dex said as he took out his gun, "And you would be, too, if you hadn't opened your mouth."

"It's not too late to turn things around, Dex", Ray tried to reason with him, "Fisk and Chase manipulated you, just like they did me and Tammy and everyone else. I can help you cut a deal with the DA. We can take him down, you and me. Two federal agents like we were before."

Dex scoffed and said, "No, that's not gonna happen, Ray. I'm more than a fed now. I feel more myself than I have in my whole life. Fisk and Chase gave me that."

"As long as I'm alive, my family's at risk", Nadeem said.

Dex pointed his gun at Nadeem and said, "Let's go, Ray."

"I'm not going anywhere with you, Dex", Ray then sighed as he threw way his bottle, "Whatever you need to do you do it here."

Ray then suddenly brandished a gun but Dex fired first.

Then a figure leapt there and pushed Nadeem away. They both fell into the place where Nadeem had dug a pool for Sami.

It was Oliver.

"Ray! Ray!" Oliver called out. He looked at him carefully and saw some blood on the side of his head. The bullet had grazed it. Almost too close to the brain.

He looked up but Dex was gone.

* * *

"Thanks Brett", Foggy said as he got off the phone.

He looked at everyone sadly and said, "Ray's alive. But he's badly wounded. He'll need surgery."

Matt got up and angrily fuming, walked out with the others.

"Matt-"

"We tried it your way", Matt said.

"Now there is only one way left", Frank said, "And it's not yours."

"The system would have worked in a perfect world, Foggy", Slade said, "But this is not perfect."

"Nadeem almost lost his life", Roy said, "Now they need to be put down."

"Otherwise, more good men will be at risk" Elektra said.

They walked out and Matt slammed the door shut, leaving a dejected Foggy alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ray survived! Yay!
> 
> How the good guys found out where Ray went will be revealed later. But I still think Matt would want to kill Fisk now as he escaped justice and Nadeem nearly lost his life.
> 
> Now the finale! I'm gonna add my own stuff to it.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	19. Streets on fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The good guys try to foil Fisk's and Chase's master plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Fisk picked up his magnificent white coat and put it around himself as reporters spoke on the news.

"After the attack at the Bulletin and the horrible tragedy at the Clinton Church, what will it take before people realize that Wilson Fisk was set up by Daredevil?" a female one asked.

"People are beginning to realize Fisk was the victim of a smear campaign", a male one said, "Daredevil was the one behind it all. And what about Daredevil's apologists like Blake Tower and Karen Page?"

"She should be in jail", the female one said.

"We have breaking news that Fisk has invited many of New York's most powerful figures to the Presidential Hotel for some kind of surprise announcement", the male one then said.

"Oh", the female one said in surprise.

Fisk looked at himself in the mirror. For a moment, he saw the little, fat boy, covered with blood and holding a hammer. But next moment, he saw himself again. What he was now.

He held a flower in his hand.

* * *

Matt took the bag off Manning's head.

Manning panted and said, "Kidnapping me will get you-"

A punch from Matt on the nose made him fall down.

"What are Fisk and Chase planning?" Matt asked.

"Planning?" Manning asked as he held his bloodied nose.

"We scouted his hotel", Oliver said, "There's extra security."

"Preparations for some big, magnificent event I think", Slade said.

"Wilson Fisk and Adrian Chase are infinitely wor-"

Oliver suddenly fired an arrow and it hit him on the shoulder. He screamed in pain as Oliver started pulling it out, making him scream even louder.

Slade and Elektra took out their swords. Frank stood over him with a knife.

"Things are about to get even worse got you", Elektra threatened.

"So speak", Roy commanded.

"What are Fisk and Chase planning?" Matt asked again.

* * *

"Do you mind if I come in?"

Fisk turned around to see Vanessa. Fisk nodded and she walked in, wearing a bridal gown.

She looked graceful. As if she wasn't of this world. Fisk now felt complete.

* * *

"Marriage?" Matt asked.

"He's been planning the ceremony for months", Manning said, "He's gonna charm the press and public and make Hell's Kitchen love him again."

Matt felt that he was leaving something out though.

"What else?" he asked.

"What?" Manning asked in confusion.

"I know you're leaving out something", Matt said, "Tell us."

"This was all I knew", Manning lied.

Slade and Elektra both stabbed him on his wrists, making him scream in pain.

"Want more?" Elektra asked.

Frank then brought the knife close to Manning's arm and threatened, "I will cut off your skin and then use this to sharpen your bone until you beg me for death."

He pressed it on his arm, some blood leaking out.

"OKAY! OKAY!" Manning yelled, making Frank let go.

After some panting, he said, "We hired many mercenaries and army officers who went rogue."

"For what?" Matt asked.

"Fisk doesn't just want to charm the city", Manning said, "He also wants to damage the city. The army is going to kill people and cause a lot of damage. And he, along with Adrian Chase, will then help the city rise again and it will look up to them. And by doing so, they will break you by showing they were more useful to this place than you ever were."

Everyone was horrified on hearing that.

"And they will be accompanied by Joe, Diaz, the Longbow Hunters and Nuke", he added.

"Nuke?" Elektra asked.

"The cyborg", Manning said, "It is called Nuke."

* * *

"Do I look that nervous?" Fisk asked Vanessa on seeing her expression.

"Yes", she said, "A little, but it's charming."

Fisk then sat on the bed and gestured Vanessa to sit next to him. She did and they held hands.

"I never knew that I could feel this way until the day that we met", Fisk said, "I didn't think that I was capable, that there would be someone that I would care for more than my own life. That her happiness would be more important than anything else."

Getting a little emotional, he then said, "And then a…..terrifying thought occurred to me that perhaps my feelings were a trick", Vanessa gave him a curious look, "The self-deception of a vain man. That the only reason why I love you is because of the way I see my reflection in your eyes. That thought, it fills me with dread. The fear that that….. I don't deserve you. And that I am broken."

"Don't you understand we're all broken?" Vanessa asked, "The point is to find the person whose broken pieces fit with yours."

* * *

"You're gonna tell us everything", Oliver said, "We wanna know where everyone is gonna be."

"Anyone who could stop us", Matt said.

"Stop you?" Manning asked.

"From killing Fisk and Chase", Matt said.

"He controls all the FBI Agents who are guarding him", Manning said, "The hotel is a fortress."

"Is that a no?" Oliver asked.

"I think it was", Slade said.

"You'll never get to him", Manning said.

"It is a no", Roy said.

Matt angrily threw him off the roof but Oliver fired a line which grabbed him by the leg and held him in the air, hanging.

"I CAN GIVE YOU SOMETHING BETTER!" Manning yelled in fear for his life.

"We're listening", Matt said.

"I witnessed Ms. Marianna order the attempted murder of Agent Nadeem", he said frantically, "And Fisk ordered many. Agent Winn. Julie Barnes! I could testify!"

"We know about Winn and Nadeem", Elektra said.

"So who's Julie Barnes?" Roy asked.

* * *

Vanessa sniffed a rose and said, "The rose. I think."

She then put it on Fisk's pocket, increasing his magnificence. Fisk adjusted it and looked at the mirror. With Vanessa by his side, he was complete now.

* * *

Adrian Chase stood on a rooftop in his Prometheus suit minus the hood and mask and looked down at the city.

"So beautiful", he said with a smirk, "With useless people in it. But I am always ten steps ahead."

Looking straight up, he said, "So it begins."

* * *

After hearing about Julie, Matt asked, "So who made Nuke?"

"What?" Manning asked.

"Nuke is a cyborg", Oliver said, "Someone would have made him."

"It was Trask!" Manning said, "Bolivar Trask!"

"The CEO of Trask Industries?" Frank asked just to be sure.

"Yes! Yes! That one!" Manning said.

"Why did he make him?" Elektra asked.

"To wipe out Enhanced", he said, "But right now, it can't differentiate between normal and Enhanced humans. It's just a prototype."

"If this is a prototype", Slade muttered, "I dread what the completed version would be like."

"We'll have to end Nuke and take down Trask too", Oliver said.

"Fisk and Chase really are ten steps ahead", Matt grumbled.

"So what are we going to do?" Elektra asked.

"Well", Oliver said, "They have an army. So we'll need more people."

"Everyone here we know", Matt said, "So let's call them up."

"And me and Matt will take down Chase and Fisk", Oliver said.

"And after that, we will take down Trask", Frank said.

* * *

Hattley stood in front of the press conference with Poindexter next to her.

"After the body of Supervisory Special Agent Winn was found in the Hudson, search divers also recovered the murder weapon", she said, "The registered service sidearm of fellow FBI agent Ray Nadeem. When agents went to take Nadeem into custody, he drew a weapon to resist arrest and forced his fellow agents to shoot him in self-defense. He is alive and undergoing surgery. When he wakes up, we will find out what kind of mental instability drove Ray Nadeem to commit this senseless act. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of all the agents who have been impacted by these events."

* * *

Later, Foggy walked into the FBI building where Poindexter walked up to him.

"Mr. Nelson", he greeted.

"Special Agent Poindexter", Foggy greeted back.

"You just won me 50 bucks", Poindexter said, "Some of the guys were betting you wouldn't show."

"I'm always available to help the FBI, Agent Poindexter", Foggy said as he turned on the camera in his phone, "In fact please smile."

He took a selfie with Poindexter and posted it on his campaign web page.

"There", he said, "Posted to my campaign web page and the tens of thousands of police officers that know that I'm here. With you. Helping."

"Relax, Mr. Nelson. You're not in any danger", Poindexter assured him, "You'll be very useful when you're the next district attorney."

"Why am I here?" Foggy asked.

"'Cause Ray Nadeem is a friend of yours", Poindexter said.

"A client", Foggy corrected.

"Sad, the way it all turned out", Poindexter said in fake sympathy.

"Even though he's proven guilty, I can't answer any questions that would violate privilege", Foggy said.

"I'm not asking you to", Poindexter said as he started walking off, "Follow me."

Foggy followed him into Hattley's cabin.

"Thank you for coming, Mr. Nelson", Seema said to him there.

"Mrs. Nadeem", Foggy said in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to apologize", she said.

"To apologize?" Foggy asked in confusion.

"I asked them to call you, because you are Ray's lawyer", she said, "And I want to fully cooperate with the investigation of my husband."

Turning to Hattley, she said, "What Ray did is-"

After a pause, she said emotionally, "How could a man I loved with all my heart, the father of my son, turn out to be such a monster?"

"It wasn't your fault, Seema", Poindexter said, "Ray fooled a lot of people. Nobody here blames you or Sami. You're still part of the FBI family."

"We'll give you the room", Hattley said, "Take all the time you need."

The two then walked out of the room.

"Suck it up", Poindexter then said smugly.

"I'm only doing this because I have to", Hattley said angrily and they both walked separate ways.

"How's Sami?" Foggy asked Seema inside.

"He's okay", she said, "With my sister. I haven't told him yet."

"When did you get here?" Foggy asked.

"I came as soon as I saw the news", she said as she took a pad and started scribbling on it, "I didn't want to believe it, but I know I needed to hear the truth."

She then showed what she had written on the pad to Foggy. She had written-  _'They are listening.'_

The two then exchanged a look. An understanding passed between them.

"I'm so sorry", Foggy then said, "That must have been an incredible shock."

"It was", she said as she scribbled more, "But I decided it was the right thing for me to come in and to cooperate."

This time, she had written-  _'To save Sami.'_

"That was smart", Foggy discreetly complimented her on how she was communicating with him, "Totally the right thing to do."

"I was hoping you could help me figure out how I can help the FBI", she said as she scribbled more, "And how will we survive?"

This time, she had written-  _'Ray's idea in his video.'_

Foggy encircled 'video' and put a question mark next to it, asking her what it meant.

She discreetly slid her phone towards him.

"I'll help you figure it out, Mrs. Nadeem", Foggy said as he took it, "Whatever I can do to help you and Sami get through this."

* * *

Dex was walking around when his phone rang. It was Felix Manning. He accepted the call.

"What do you want?" he asked Manning.

"I'm coming for you, Dex", Matt said from the other end, "And my suit."

"Where's Felix?" Dex asked.

"You'll find out soon enough", Matt said cryptically.

"I've got some free time now", Dex said, "Why don't we meet up?"

"I have a question", Matt said, "Did you enjoy the feeling you got when you killed those birdies? Is that why you're still killing?"

"Birdies?" Dex asked in confusion.

"The ones you killed with rocks", Matt reminded him, "I bet it felt good at first, right? Then it's never the same after that. What do you think Dr. Mercer would say if she could see you now?"

"Can you hang on a second? I need a tissue for all the tears I'm crying over my shitty childhood", Dex said sarcastically.

"Have you heard from your friend Julie lately?" Matt asked.

"You wanna talk to Dr. Mercer, asshole?" Dex asked angrily, "Keep talking."

"What do you think she'd say if she knew about the innocent people you killed?" Matt asked him, "I bet she'd be disappointed, Dex. If she were still alive."

Dex angrily threatened, "If you-If you hurt Julie-"

"Fisk and Chase had her killed", Matt revealed to Dex's shock, "They killed Julie, so they could replace her as your North Star."

"You should stick to beating on people in alleys", Dex said in denial, "Because you're not going to get in my head."

"You don't have to believe me", Matt said, "Then again, you may wanna ask how I got Manning's phone."

"Don't know. Don't care", Dex said.

"Julie wouldn't approve of you killing people, Dex", Matt said.

"Stop saying her name", Dex said angrily.

"You said you got some free time?" Matt asked, "You may wanna check out 16 Canal Place."

"Why?" Dex asked. But the call was cut.

* * *

Foggy and Karen watched the video of Ray Nadeem.

"If you're showing this to Sami, I need you to stop the video now", he said and then started declaring, "For everyone else- My name is Special Agent Ray Nadeem of the FBI, and under federal law, I swear that the testimony I'm about to give is the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth and should be considered my dying declaration."

Foggy and Karen exchanged a look and continued watching.

"I'm guilty of a number of criminal acts, and I was in no way acting alone", Nadeem said before spilling the beans, "Wilson Fisk and Adrian Chase coerced me and a number of fellow FBI agents into aiding and abetting a criminal conspiracy to extort protection money from New York crime organizations"

* * *

" _I gotta hand it to you Fisk", Carbon said as she recovered from her shock, "You know how to put on a show."_

* * *

Nadeem continued, "And Adrian Chase is not an agent at all. He's an infiltrator. Agents Arinori, Johnson, Markham, Mockter, O'Connor and Ramsey all took part and continue to act as Fisk's and Chase's operatives under the orders of our boss, Special Agent in Charge Tammy Hattley."

Foggy and Karen looked shocked on hearing that.

"There may be others", Ray said, "I can't be sure. But I personally witnessed SAC Hattley murder Agent Winn in her kitchen, using my handgun."

* * *

_Hattley shot Winn in the neck and head as Nadeem yelled, "NO!"_

* * *

Nadeem continued speaking, "And then witnessed Fisk's aide, Felix Manning, remove the body and use this crime and threats against my family to blackmail me into cooperating with Fisk and Chase. I'm not making any excuses, because I aided and abetted the worst crime of them all."

His face was now a little emotional as he said, "I personally drove Special Agent Ben Poindexter to the Clinton Church dressed in a fake Daredevil suit. And Adrian Chase was with us too, dressed as the Throwing Star Killer. I knew at this point that Poindexter was the killer who attacked the Bulletin and Chase was an infiltrator as well as the Throwing Star Killer, and I knew they were going to do something horrible at the church. But I let it happen anyway."

He looked like he was about to cry but he held back his tears and continued, "So I'm guilty of aiding and abetting the murder of Father Paul Lantom."

Foggy and Karen gave guilty sighs on hearing that.

"I'm ashamed of what I've done", Ray said, "But that doesn't change the fact that I and everyone I just named are guilty as hell."

He then addressed his wife directly, "Seems, you need to get this video to my attorneys. And don't try and run. Go to the FBI and pretend like you don't know anything about any of this. Tell them I'm a monster. It's the only way that you and Sami can get through this. I'm sorry, baby. I will always love you."

With tears in his eyes, he gave Seema a flying kiss as a last goodbye.

The video then ended.

"God", Karen gasped emotionally, "He knew he was gonna die. It's only a miracle he survived."

Turning to Foggy, she said, "Okay, so maybe it won't hold up in court. But if we put this out there, it'll make Fisk's and Chase's lives a living hell."

"Actually", Foggy said, "A dying declaration is exempt from the hearsay rule."

"What?" Karen asked.

"The court says that a person who believes that they're dying is has less incentive to lie", Foggy said, "Ray survived but he believed he was going to die. Therefore, anything they say is-"

"You're telling me this is admissible in court?" Karen asked.

"Every damn word", Foggy said, "It's the silver bullet to take down Fisk."

"Shit", Karen said, "The world has to know."

Looking at Karen, Foggy said, "The world and Matt."

* * *

That night, Dex entered a penthouse, gun raised and flashlight on. He looked around for any threats. He cautiously walked towards a door and slowly opened it.

Inside were two body bags. Dex ripped off one. It turned out to be a man. He ripped off the other. It was another man. These were the 'construction workers' who had worked for Manning.

He turned to his right and saw another body bag. Slowly reaching out, he ripped off-

Revealing it to be a dead Julie.

He involuntarily fell back, gasping in horror. Gasping repeatedly, he walked out of the room and roared angrily.

That moment, his phone rang again. He accepted the call and said with an intense burning hatred, "When I find you-"

"Like I said", Matt said from the other end, "Fisk and Chase killed her and we both know it."

"You did this", Dex said angrily in denial.

"Think, Dex", Matt said, "Who got Julie the job in the hotel? Who had you followed when you were stalking her? It was all Fisk and Chase. You let them turn you into a murderer. You think they're gonna let Julie get in the way?"

"Why are you telling me this?" Dex asked.

"'Cause Fisk wants to get married tonight", Matt revealed, "And I don't think he deserves a life of happily ever after."

And then Oliver's voice said from the other end, "And Chase need to be put down too."

* * *

Later, Matt and Oliver stood outside the hotel. Matt heard everything while Oliver observed carefully. The crime-lords Fisk had threatened were at the wedding too. Except Rosalie Carbon though, none of them were pleased about being summoned like this. Not that they could do anything about it.

* * *

Karen walked into the Bulletin office. Looking at her, Ellison handed her a newspaper and said, "Well, it's official. Yesterday sucked."

"Yes, it did", Karen said as she put the newspaper down and started playing the video on the laptop, "But today is gonna make it all worth it."

"What's this?" Ellison asked.

"Look", Karen said as Ellison sat down to watch.

The two then watched as Ray said, "My name is Special Agent Ray Nadeem of the FBI, and under federal law, I swear that the testimony I'm about to give-"

Ellison and Karen exchanged a look and continued watching. When it was over, Ellison exclaimed, "I can't believe this!"

"I know", Karen said, "But it's true."

"So what are we going to do?" he asked.

"Circulate it everywhere", Karen said.

Suddenly, Ellison's phone rang. He accepted the call and as he heard what was being said on the other end, he paled.

"What is it, Ellison?" Karen asked.

"Some army", Ellison said, "It's attacking the city and destroying stuff."

"Oh shit!" Karen cursed.

* * *

Nuke fired it's semi-automatic around, killing people. Being a machine, the loss of life and property didn't bother it at all. Joe sliced any people who came in their way. Diaz shot them all down. Some cops tried to stop them. Silencer activated her device and the sounds in the vicinity became inaudible.

Red Dart fired her darts at two cops. They were poisonous. The cops spasmed and died violently. Two more arrived but Kodiak slammed one with his shield before tripping the other and slamming his neck with his foot, killing him. He did the same to the other one.

The army of mercenaries and rogue soldiers were also killing people and damaging buildings. Two of them were mounted on a machine gun which they fired around, killing people and damaging electric poles enough to make them topple. Fires were erupting all around them.

Suddenly, a red arrow landed in their midst. Before they could react, it exploded, taking down about ten of them.

And then someone landed on the ground in front of the army and punched it hard. The punch shattered the ground and the concussive blast sent Nuke, Joe, Diaz, the Longbow Hunters and some of the army flying back.

The person straightened, revealing herself to be a woman wearing a white hooded jacket and other clothes of the same color. She had a katana in her hand. Her fist glowed white. She was Colleen Wing, the new Iron Fist after Danny had allowed her to take the power.

The army tried to fire at her but she channeled her chi into her katana and used it to deflect all the shots. Another red arrow landed in their midst and exploded, getting about ten more.

Kodiak walked towards her with his shield when he was grabbed from the side and thrown towards a building. He hit the building hard enough to crack it and fell down, dazed. It was Luke Cage. He turned to the army. They fired at him but his skin was unaffected.

Suddenly, another woman jumped down next to him and picking up two soldiers, threw them off like rag dolls. She wore a black leather jacket and torn trousers. She was Jessica Jones.

"You lot want to get the party started?" she asked sarcastically.

Everyone aimed their weapons at them.

"Looks like a yes", she said.

Two of the soldiers were hit with knives in their throats and fell down, dead. Elektra jumped down in their midst with Slade. She sliced a soldier's throat and cut off another's head as Deathstroke gave one an upwards slice, killing him.

This ruined the coordination with which they were all fighting. Roy swung down with a line and kicked Red Dart away.

Nuke and Diaz fired but Luke and Colleen deflected the shots.

"I guess you want some", Luke said to them.

He rushed Nuke and punched him. The punch threw off his shades, revealing the red optic underneath.

"Sweet Christmas!" Luke cursed.

Nuke grabbed him by the throat and lifting him up said, "Fuck you asshole."

It then threw him off. The fight had now begun.

* * *

A car was being driven into the parking lot.

Agent Lim stopped it. The mirror came down.

"Hey there, Lim", Dexdevil said with a smirk.

"Dex?" Lim asked in shock.

"That's Agent Lim", Dex said to the one sitting next to him, "He's one of the good ones."

Lim followed his gaze and was horrified to see the dead, frozen body of a woman next to him.

Still horrified, he tried to say, "What in the hell-"

"Do yourself a favor", Dexdevil said, "Walk away."

* * *

Matt heard sounds of punching.

"He's here", Matt told Oliver.

"Let's go", Oliver said.

* * *

Inside, the ceremony was going on.

The priest said was saying, "-To be a loving and faithful husband, in plenty and in want, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

Fisk didn't say anything as he was enthralled by Vanessa's beauty.

"Wilson?" Vanessa called out. When he didn't reply, she asked again, "Wilson?"

Wilson snapped out of his daze.

"I-"

He trailed off awkwardly before saying, "Repeat the question."

Everyone gave good-natured laughs to that.

"Do you?" the priest asked again.

In a firm tone, Fisk said, "I do."

Turning to Vanessa, he asked, "And you?"

In an equally firm tone, she said, "I do."

The priest then said, "Then you may."

The two then leaned closer to each other and gave each other a deep, passionate, loving kiss as everyone applauded.

* * *

Matt and Oliver walked into the parking lot, dressed in their suits.

Lim was lying there, unconscious. The two turned to the car and were horrified to find Julie's dead body there.

"The guy's one big psychopath", Oliver commented.

* * *

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, we'd like to invite the bride and groom to the floor for the first dance" the announcer said.

"I believe that's our cue", Vanessa said to Fisk with a smile.

Fisk nodded and the two walked into the middle of the hall. There, they started their slow, romantic first dance.

He had his hand on her waist while she had hers around his neck.

People around were recording it with their phones. Suddenly, all of them received video messages. They opened them.

"My name is Special Agent Ray Nadeem of the FBI, and under the federal law, I swear that the testimony I'm about to give-"

Everyone started looking at Fisk and Vanessa.

"Everyone's looking at us", Vanessa said.

"They're staring", Fisk noticed.

Everyone in the hall had received the video and were looking between it and Fisk.

Fisk took one of their phones and watched as Ray said, "My name is Special Agent Ray Nadeem of the FBI, and under the federal law-"

Fisk handed that phone back and looked at Vanessa.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the next one's a favorite", the announcer said, "So grab your dance partner and head to the floor."

Fisk then noticed Carbon walking away.

The two then started dancing again as Vanessa assured him, "You'll handle it, Wilson. Like you handle everything. Show them that none of it matters."

Fisk then danced with her, pretending that nothing was happening.

* * *

Matt and Oliver walked upstairs as a fallen agent said via comms, "Agent down. I repeat, agent down. Daredevil is en route to the ballroom."

Matt and Oliver then ran up.

* * *

"Sir, there's a problem", Hattley said to Fisk, "Agents are down."

She then walked off to inform the other agents of the situation.

"We're under attack", Fisk said in realization.

"I'd like to make a toast."

Everyone turned to see Dex standing on the stage, wearing his fake Daredevil suit. Everyone froze on seeing him. Someone even dropped a glass from his hand in horror.

Fisk and Vanessa looked at him, confused.

Looking at Fisk and Vanessa, he said, "Julie and I wish you the absolute best."

And then he threw the mike at Vanessa. Just before it could hit her, a flying tray deflected it.

Everyone screamed and ran around in terror.

Matt and Oliver stood there. Dex looked at them in anger.

Fisk's bodyguards led him and Vanessa away. Some of the agents opened fire. Matt flipped behind a table and took cover behind it with Oliver. Oliver got up and fired an arrow, getting an agent on the shoulder, putting him down.

Dex threw a vase at one. It hit him on the head and he was out. Matt grabbed an agent from behind and slammed him to the ground. Oliver smacked another with his bow, knocking him out.

Matt picked up a table cloth. Dex had put an agent in a chokehold. Matt wrapped the table cloth on his face, making him stagger around violently. Matt punched him hard on the face, slamming him into a vase. He tried to get up but Oliver smacked him in the stomach with the bow, putting him down.

* * *

Fisk and Vanessa walked towards his room.

"How did this happen?" Fisk asked an agent.

"Dex knows our security protocols", the agent pointed out.

The two went into his room and Vanessa said, "That video of Agent Nadeem is a threat to us."

Standing at the door, "I'll discredit his testimony and take care of everything. I will threaten his family and make him take it back. I will handle it."

"Wilson-"

"I should have never let Dex get that close to you", Fisk said regretfully.

"Be angry later", Vanessa said, "Be smart now."

As Fisk turned to the door, she walked to him and said, "Listen to me. We need to run."

"You didn't make a mistake marrying me", Fisk said.

"I know that", Vanessa assured him, "But now, be smart. For both of us."

* * *

Outside, Dex flipped and threw big, pointed pieces of glass at two agents, hitting them in the stomach. Matt and Oliver opened a door and walked off through it.

Dex threw more pieces of glass at them till they were down. Behind him, an injured Hattley was crawling towards her gun.

Dex turned to her and picked up a gun of a fallen agent and shot her on the side.

She groaned and begged him, "Please don't."

He pulled the trigger but nothing happened. The gun was empty now.

Dex turned and threw the gun. It hit her on the head, knocking her out.

* * *

In the streets, the bigger fight continued. Although the heroes had a lot of momentum in the start, it had now worn off. They were now fighting a desperate battle to survive.

Elektra cut off the head of another soldier. Colleen dodged another's attack and sliced him down before deflecting shots with her katana. She sliced the man's gun with it before cutting him down. Luke punched Nuke, making it stagger back. He tried to punch again but Nuke blocked and head-butted him, stunning him. It then brought down its fist on his head, making him stagger back. It then gave him an uppercut, throwing him down.

Slade and Joe dueled.

"Don't you see, father?" Joe asked, "This is what we are meant to be."

"No", Slade said, "We are better than this."

"NO!" Joe said angrily as he blocked a strike and ducked to avoid another, "I am a monster. And you are one too. Like father, like son."

Slade regretfully blocked a strike and pushed Joe down.

Roy fired an arrow at a soldier, putting him down. He turned around and smacked another one. Elektra sliced one's knee before slicing his throat. Jessica punched out another soldier before kicking away another.

"Assholes never learn", she said as she rolled her eyes.

Roy ducked to avoid a strike from Diaz before smacking him with his bow, making him stagger back.

Silencer was about to press her device when Jessica grabbed her wrist and twisted it, making her yell in pain.

"You don't get to press mute today, kid", she said sarcastically before throwing her off.

Slade had his sword on Joe's throat. That moment, he felt a gun to his head from behind.

"Put down your weapon", he said.

Slade didn't move.

"PUT DOWN YOUR WEAPONS!" he said loudly. This time, everyone heard him.

"Stop fighting", he said to the heroes, "Or I'll blow his head off."

"Don't!" Slade said.

"Do it", Joe commanded.

Elektra, Colleen and Roy reluctantly put down their weapons while Jessica and Luke raised their hands.

"All interference always comes to an end", Diaz said with a smirk as he took out his gun and pointed it at Roy.

No one noticed someone sneaking onto the vehicle with the machine gun on it. The soldier standing on it did not sense anyone behind him, which was his last mistake ever.

Frank Castle cut off his head with a machete. He then quickly reloaded the machine gun. The soldier sitting on the front of the vehicle heard that and tried to run out but Frank shot him into bits and pieces with the machine gun.

All the combatants heard that and turned to the vehicle. Frank turned the machine gun on the army and started firing. The bullets hit the soldiers. Three of them were ripped in half by the force of the bullets. More soldiers were hit, being torn into shreds.

The army started running around, chaos in their ranks. The one with his gun on Slade was looking the other way. Slade turned around and grabbing him by the neck, snapped it, before throwing him down.

Elektra and Colleen picked up their swords and simultaneously sliced the throats of three soldiers each. Roy rushed Diaz and pinned him to the ground before punching him out with his metal arm. He then picked up his bow and fired two arrows simultaneously at two soldiers, taking them down.

Jessica kicked one and he fell into two more.

Luke punched Nuke and gave it an uppercut, making it stagger back. He tried to punch again but Nuke ducked to avoid and punched him on the chest, making him stagger back.

Frank fired the machine gun around, shooting more soldiers into bits and pieces.

* * *

Matt and Oliver ran through the door. An agent raised his gun but Matt hit his hand hard, disarming him before punching him out. Oliver shot another agent coming from behind him.

Shelby stood up on seeing them.

"You came back!" she exclaimed to Matt.

"Police are on their way up", Matt said, "Can you shut down the elevators?"

"Why?" she asked.

"So nobody interferes", Oliver said. She did as commanded while they went through another door.

On the other side stood Wilson Fisk with Vanessa. From the ceiling jumped down Adrian Chase, dressed as Prometheus.

He took off his mask and threw down his hood, revealing his face.

"Hello, Oliver", he said with a smirk, "Just like old times."

"Run!" Fisk said to Vanessa and she complied.

Matt and Fisk then gave enraged, primal roars as they charged at each other. Matt pushed Fisk back into the room.

Oliver and Adrian clashed their weapons before Oliver backed to avoid a swing of his sword. Adrian pushed him on the ground. Before he could strike again, Oliver caught his head with his feet and brought him down too.

He got up but Chase grabbed him from behind and pushed him into the room too. Vanessa watched as Matt crashed through a wall.

Fisk emerged and grabbing him by the neck, slammed him to the ground twice before punching him thrice. Matt then punched him, making him stagger away.

He then got up and gave him an uppercut before giving him another punch. He then punched a lamp in between them. The lamp hit Fisk with such force that he fell down the stairs.

Chase swung his sword but Oliver ducked and went behind him. He then grabbed Chase and picking him up, slammed them both to the ground.

Chase elbowed him thrice before Oliver pushed him off. The two tried to get up at the same time. Chase grabbed Oliver's leg and tried to pull him down but Oliver punched him hard and he let go.

"I went after your friend, Oliver", Chase said with a smirk, "Nearly destroyed his life. Kill me."

"You will pay for that", Oliver said angrily as he grabbed him by the collar and punched him thrice.

Vanessa opened the door to run off, only to see Dex moving towards her. She backed in fear. Matt heard that and jumped down. He jumped on a table and rolling over it, kicked Dex away with both feet.

Dex crashed into a lamp. Matt quickly made Vanessa get down. Dex picked up a tray and threw it at Matt who dodged as he leapt over the table and then hid under it.

He picked up a pointed object and threw it but Oliver deflected it with an arrow. Before he could fire again, Adrian pushed him off and pinning him to a pillar, punched him thrice before Oliver blocked and head-butted him, making him stagger back.

Dex tried to pick something else when Fisk grabbed him and angrily slammed him on the wall thrice. He punched him and tried to do it again but Dex dodged. Fisk hit the brick wall instead, cracking it. He screamed in pain as it hurt his fist too.

Dex tried to hit him with a tray but Fisk slammed him into the wall and tried to punch but he ducked and went behind him before throwing it on his back.

He tried to run upstairs but Fisk grabbed him and with a roar, threw him down. He then slammed him on both the railings of the stairs before throwing him up, crashing him into a lamp.

Fisk then turned around, only to receive a flying kick from Matt. Fisk tried to hit him but Matt ducked and punched him on the face. Fisk grabbed him by the throat and slammed him onto a table, shattering it. He then slammed Matt on the ground repeatedly.

Oliver deflected two shurikens from Adrian before getting kicked to a wall. Adrian tried to hit him with his sword but Oliver ducked to avoid before picking him up and slamming him to the ground. He then punched him thrice, stunning him.

Dex threw his stick on the chandelier above, making it fall down. Matt kicked Fisk away and himself rolled away to avoid being crushed by it.

Dex then picked up some of its broken pieces and threw them at Fisk, making him stagger back. Matt picked up two big pieces of it. Oliver stood next to him.

He threw a piece but Matt deflected it with his stick. He threw another but Oliver deflected it with an arrow. He threw a third one at Vanessa but this time, a shuriken thrown by a still fallen Chase deflected it.

He threw three more. Matt deflected two while Oliver deflected the third. Oliver then leapt up and smacked Dex on the face with his bow, making him stagger back.

Before he could react, Matt kicked him away. He tried to strike again but Oliver struck his hand, making him stagger back. In a rotatory motion, Matt struck him on the face with his big piece of the chandelier, throwing him off.

Chase got up again and threw a shuriken at Oliver. Oliver sensed it and ducked to avoid. He then turned around. The two charged each other with angry, primal roars and clashed their weapons, trying to push the other back.

Fisk wrapped his coat around Vanessa and said, "Run!"

"What about you?"

"I'll meet you downstairs", Fisk said before gesturing to the coat, "Keep it."

She opened the door and ran out. Matt crashed through a glass window. Dex walked in after him. Picking up two pieces of glass, he threw them at Fisk's thighs, making him stagger back as he started bleeding.

Matt flipped and kicked Dex on the face, making him stagger away.

Oliver kicked Chase in the stomach, making him stagger back. He then did a frontal flip, hitting Adrian's chin and making him spit out a wad of blood.

Dex tried to hit Matt but he dodged and gave him a combo of three punches. Fisk took the pieces of glass out of his thighs.

Matt dodged another blow and punched Dex before kicking him on the shoulder, making him fall on a couch.

There, Dex saw Vanessa looking down on him from the stairs. He quickly picked up a tray and threw it on her. Matt leapt into the air and caught it.

A hand touched Dex's shoulder. As he turned around, Fisk lifted him up and roaring like a madman, ran into the brick wall. He slammed Dex's back on the brick wall, shattering a part of it while Dex's spine broke. He then threw him down. Dex lay, groaning due to the pain of his broken back.

Adrian punched Oliver twice before Oliver blocked the third punch and head-butted him, making him stagger back. He gave him another punch, making him stagger back again.

Oliver then took out an arrow and stabbed Adrian in the thigh, "This was for Matt!"

As Adrian fell on his knees, Oliver took out another arrow and stabbed it into his shoulder, "This was for Laurel!"

Adrian looked at him, smirking one last time.

Oliver took out a third arrow and said, "And this-"

He jammed the arrow into Adrian's chest, "Was for my son."

"You…..are…..a….monster…..after…all…." Chase whispered hoarsely as he lay on his back, dying.

"No", Oliver said with a smirk, "I did it because you are a monster who had to be stopped at all costs. I did what I had to do. I am not a monster."

Hearing that, Adrian's smirk vanished and he coughed up blood, knowing he had failed utterly in his mission. With one last cough, he lay on the ground, his glassy eyes staring without seeing.

Adrian Chase was dead!

Matt and Fisk now faced each other.

Fisk tried to punch but Matt dodged and punched him, making him stagger back. He then punched him twice again.

Fisk then punched him, making him stagger back too. Matt recovered and gave him another punch, stunning him. With a roar, Matt punched him two more times. He then punched Fisk on the face again, stunning him.

Fisk recovered and head-butted him, making him fall down. Fisk then looked up at Vanessa, who was looking at him with tears in her eyes.

Matt got back up. That moment, Oliver fired at Fisk. The arrow hit him on the shoulder, making him clutch it reflexively.

Matt punched him down and punched him again.

"Stop", Vanessa begged in a whisper.

Matt punched him repeatedly, making him spit out wads of blood on the wall. He then held Fisk steady with one hand and punched him more, making him spit out more blood.

"STOP IT, PLEASE!"

Hearing Vanessa's terrified plea, Matt froze in his tracks. He grabbed Fisk's head with both of his hands, trying to snap it.

But at the last moment, he let go and roared loudly, taking out all his anger and frustration. Oliver smiled, knowing Matt had not let his demons control him. This was exactly like what had happened on Lian Yu months ago.

Fisk raised his hands and gloated, "I will never stop hunting Karen Page or Foggy Nelson. I will tell the world who you really are."

"Wilson-"

"Vanessa, please go", Fisk said desperately, "Please!"

"You", Matt said as he pointed at Fisk, "You want me to kill you."

"No prison can keep me", Fisk gloated, "You know that. Come on, kill me!"

"No!" Matt yelled back as he stood within inches of Fisk's face, "God knows I want to, but you don't get to destroy who I am. You will go back to prison, and you will live the rest of your miserable life in a cage", he gestured at Vanessa, "Knowing you'll never have Vanessa, that this city rejected you. It beat you. I BEAT YOU!"

As Fisk breathed heavily, Matt knelt close to him and taking off his mask said, "You'll keep my secret, and you won't harm Karen Page or Foggy Nelson or anyone else. Because if you do, I will go after your wife."

Fisk gave him a murderous glare.

"And I will prove Vanessa ordered the attempted murder of Agent Ray Nadeem", Matt said, "And like her husband, she'll spend the rest of her life in a cell."

"I failed you", Fisk said regretfully to Vanessa, "I failed you."

"No", she said.

"Everything that I tried to build for us", Fisk muttered, "Vanessa, today was the happiest day of my life."

Vanessa walked up to him and cupping his face in her hands said, "All I wanted was you. Please."

Vanessa wiped a tear from his eye.

Turning to Matt who had lowered his mask again, Fisk said, "If I agree to your demands, then you leave my wife alone. You leave Vanessa free!"

"If you keep your word", Matt said as he walked up to them.

"Then, it's a deal", Fisk said as he held out his hand.

Matt shook it. This was a deal now.

"Stay in your cell", Oliver said to Fisk.

Matt and Oliver then walked away and up the stairs as Mahoney and some other cops arrived. Mahoney looked up to see Matt and Oliver before turning to Fisk.

"Wilson Fisk", he said, "You're under arrest."

He then saw Chase's dead body, arrows sticking out of him.

"Load him up on a stretcher", Mahoney said, "Take him to the morgue."

One of the cops unmasked Dex, who was still lying on the ground.

Dex muttered incoherently, "I….. can't…. move"

"He isn't the real Daredevil", Mahoney said.

"How do you know?" a cop asked.

"Because he is", Mahoney said as he gestured to Matt who was retreating after Oliver.

* * *

On the streets, the fight was still going on. Frank continued firing around with the machine gun. Soldiers were blown into bits.

Slade sliced the throat of a soldier and cut off another's hand before stabbing him in the chest, killing him too.

Elektra cut off the legs of a soldier before cutting off his head. Colleen punched a soldier with her Iron Fist and he crashed into four more.

Jessica slammed a man on the ground and kicked him out. She saw Red Dart aiming at her. Before she could fire, Elektra cut off her head from behind.

The two women gave each other nods.

Roy fired at two more soldiers, putting them down. Luke kicked Nuke on the knee and picking it up, slammed it on the ground.

Before he could punch, Nuke head-butted him and pushed him off. Diaz had gotten back up. He took out a long gun and discreetly moved towards the machine gun.

As Frank continued firing around, Diaz fired his gun. It spilled forth fire, like a fire-breathing dragon. Frank ducked behind the shield on the gun to avoid the fire.

Diaz moved closer, intending to burn Frank to death with the flames of the gun. Suddenly, the barrel was closed by webbing.

Diaz looked at it, puzzled. A swinging figure kicked him away. It was Spider-Man.

"The dragon won't enter this time", Spider-Man said.

Nuke stood over Luke, intending to smash his face with its foot.

Suddenly, it was hit from behind by a circular blur. The impact threw it off and made it fall at a distance. The blur flew back to the direction it came from. A hand plucked it from the air, revealing it to be shield of red, blue and white.

It was Captain America!

He threw the shield again. It hit some soldiers, sending them down. He caught it on return and in a rotatory motion, slammed a soldier on the face, sending him down. In another rotatory motion, he kicked a soldier. His strength made the soldier fly off.

He leapt and hit another man with his shield, sending him down. He threw his shield, sending another man down and caught it on its return.

Two soldiers were killed by gunshots. Before the others could react, a blonde woman leapt onto one and wrapping her feet around him, hit him with her gauntlets. They sent shocks through him and he was out. She flipped, disarming another soldier. In a rotatory motion, she swept his feet from under him and then kicked him out. She then took out two batons and in a rotatory motion, hit a soldier with them, knocking him out. She was Black Widow.

A soldier was hit by an arrow and was down. An archer dressed in black swung down using a line and kicked another one away. He fired another arrow at a soldier. It hit him on the chest. He then pressed a button on his bow which made the arrow send electric shocks through the soldier's body, putting him down. Turning around, he turned his bow into a bo-staff and smacked another soldier on the face, putting him down. He was Hawkeye.

Some of the soldiers were hit by a mini-gun and were down too. A man in a grey suit of armor landed on the ground. He was War Machine.

Another flying figure kicked a soldier away and landed on the ground before wrapping his wings. He was Falcon. He fired his Steyr SPP machine guns, gunning down some soldiers.

A red mist formed around the flames that were still in the building. The mist covered the flames and managed to throw them up into the night sky. It was Scarlet Witch.

The Avengers had come.

Kodiak got back up and raised his shield. Captain America threw his shield. In the clash of shields, the Captain's vibranium shield sliced through Kodiak's normal one and threw him back. He caught it on return. Before Kodiak could get up, Captain America punched him out with his left hand, which was made of metal.

The remainder of the army was cut down pretty easily with all the heroes together. Diaz tried to run away. He looked around, making sure no one was watching him.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his stomach and involuntarily put his hand on it due to the pain. He looked down and saw a machete embedded in his stomach, a hand on it. He looked up to see Frank, giving him a death glare. Diaz, for the first time in a long time, felt fear.

Frank then sliced his abdomen and fingers, disemboweling him. Diaz fell to his knees as his intestines started falling out. Frank put his foot to Diaz's chin and kicked him away.

Diaz rolled down, his intestines and blood spilling out more. He then lay on the ground, dead.

"Joe!" Slade called out, "Joe!"

But Joe wasn't there. He had escaped.

"I'm sorry, Slade", Roy said sympathetically to him.

"Where's the big man?" Captain America asked.

"It's not a man", Elektra said as she walked up next to him, "It's a machine. A cyborg. It has been covered by living tissue to make it look like a man."

"Oh, my God!" Captain America said, "You know who made it?"

"It's called Nuke", Elektra said, "And it has been made by Trask Industries. To wipe out all Enhanced."

Captain America's eyes widened in horror.

"They all need to be stopped", he said.

* * *

Foggy and Karen watched as Chase's dead body was brought out on a stretcher. Hattley, Vanessa and Fisk were lead out by cops.

"He's alive", Foggy said on seeing Fisk, "Thank God."

Mahoney tried to put Fisk into the police van.

"Please", Fisk begged, "Give me a moment to say goodbye to my wife."

"Did you give one to Ray Nadeem?" Mahoney asked coldly.

"Please", Fisk begged as Vanessa looked at him sadly, "Please!"

Fisk roared angrily as Mahoney shoved him into the car and closed the door.

"Matt should be here", Foggy said.

"Well", Karen said, "I'm pretty sure he is."

* * *

On top of a building, Matt was there. He was in a crouching position. Oliver stood next to him, looking down.

Wilson Fisk and Adrian Chase had been taken down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the Avengers showed up too. Bet you didn't see that coming. As for the timeline, this story takes place after Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4.
> 
> In the official timeline, the season took place before Avengers: Infinity War but here I changed it. But like every other fan, I am clueless about what will happen in the movie.
> 
> So the Avengers lineup was just assumption on my part. For this universe, Steve Rogers and Tony Stark are dead unfortunately. And Vision was already dead in Avengers: Infinity War.
> 
> Bucky is the new Captain America and he leads the Avengers. Black Widow, Spider-Man, Scarlet Witch, Falcon and War Machine are part of it too. Black Panther and Doctor Strange are also with them but they are in Wakanda and the New York Sanctum respectively.
> 
> Thor is alive too but he is with the Guardians of the Galaxy (since it is not too far-fetched to imagine he is going to join them).
> 
> Bruce Banner is out of action for some time.
> 
> If things do not go like this in Avengers 4, then just imagine this as an alternate MCU.
> 
> I'm pretty sure their appearance gave everyone Daredevil#233(the last part of the 'Born Again' storyline) vibes.
> 
> I hope you liked how I resolved most of the things.
> 
> The machine gun bit and 'Diaz disembowelment' bit were taken from the 2008 Rambo movie.
> 
> There are two or three more chapters left.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	20. I am machine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky Barnes tries to find out more about the 'Sentinel Program.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> I just realized that I forgot about Ant-Man, Wasp and Captain Marvel in the previous chapter. Let's just say they too were on different assignments.
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

Bucky Barnes sat in front of the computer, typing things into it. After Elektra had told him about Nuke being a cyborg which had been created by Trask Industries to wipe out all Enhanced, he had broken into the Trask Industries Building when everyone but the lazy security guard had gone home.

He punched the keys and managed to break the right codes. What flashed across the screen made him pale.

_Sentinel Program._

_Project Rebirth an Addition._

Bucky read more out loud, "Steve Rogers. Unfit for active duty. Subject of a chemical experiment that made him a Superman. Steve Rogers- a Super Soldier- Prototype for what was to be considered the American Fighting Elite."

Bucky then continued to read and got more disturbed. Trask had secretly been following a lot of things connected to Project Rebirth. And reading about his late friend, who formerly held the mantle of Captain America almost brought tears to his eyes.

He then read the main points of the Sentinel Program, "Creation of cyborgs who can differentiate between normal humans and Enhanced and wipe out the latter. Status is 'off the books' for now due to abolition of the Sokovia Accords."

He then read the connection between the two programs, "Living tissue is injected with a variation of the Super Soldier serum before being put around the metal endoskeleton of the cyborg that has been created. It can't differentiate between humans and Enhanced for now but it can still do many things. Nuke Model 101."

That moment, he was grabbed from behind and thrown off. He fell down.

Before he could get up, Nuke grabbed his throat and started choking him.

In a cold, heavy and neutral voice, it said, "You are terminated."

Bucky then punched it with his metal arm, throwing it off. He then ran to the computer and picked up his shield.

Nuke took out a semi-automatic and fired at Bucky but he deflected with his shield before ramming it into Nuke. Both of them crashed through a wall.

As they tried to get up, Bucky threw the shield. It hit Nuke, throwing it down and then returned to Bucky's hand. Before Nuke could get up, Bucky leapt into the air and kicked it with one foot, sending it flying back.

As it got up, an arrow embedded onto its back. Before it could react, the arrow exploded, flipping it onto the ground. It was Oliver. Matt arrived there too.

The explosion destroyed some more living tissue, exposing the metal endoskeleton underneath. Matt threw his stick. It hit Nuke and returned to his hand.

Bucky punched it on the face as Oliver embedded an arrow on it. The arrow exploded, destroying most of its face, revealing its actual metal one.

"What the hell are you?" Oliver asked.

In a bone-chilling metallic voice, it gave the response it was supposed to give, "I am machine."

It then punched Oliver hard, making him fly back and crash into Matt. It tried to punch Bucky but he grabbed its arm and hit it with the shield before hitting its face, making it stagger back.

It tried to punch again but Bucky blocked with his shield, producing a loud metallic clang.

Matt picked up a chair and hit Nuke with it. The chair broke while Nuke staggered very slightly. Bucky leapt into the air and kicked it on the chest, sending it flying back. As it tried to get up, Oliver fired three arrows simultaneously. They embedded onto it and exploded. When the smoke cleared, the thing in front of them did not resemble any man in any way.

Now what it was could be seen clearly. A machine. A cyborg. Made of metal. The living tissue surrounding it had been destroyed. The explosion had damaged its knee joint. It limped towards Bucky but Oliver fired another arrow. It embedded onto its knee joint and exploded. This explosion severed its body into two halves.

The upper half tried to crawl towards Bucky in a last-ditched effort to kill him. Bucky raised his shield and brought it down on the cyborg repeatedly, finally smashing its head. Nuke had been destroyed.

"This thing….." Matt trailed off, not sure how to describe it.

"I can't believe someone would make this", Bucky said, "Trask Industries is going down."

"So you are Captain America?" Oliver asked.

"Yes", Bucky said.

"My friend here has told me a lot about you", Oliver said as he raised his hand, "It's an honor to meet you, Captain."

Bucky shook it firmly and said, "I am Captain America. But before me, it was someone else."

"Yeah", Matt told Oliver, "Steve Rogers died unfortunately. This is Bucky Barnes. He has taken up the mantle."

Bucky lowered his hand and got down to business, not wanting to talk about his deceased friend, "I got information on their computers. I will take it and hand it over to the authorities."

"Good to know", Matt said.

"Really good", Oliver added.

"Thank you for your help, Matthew", Bucky said, making Matt's jaw drop.

"We are the Avengers", Bucky said, "We keep tabs on all vigilantes."

"Oh!" Matt responded.

"Thank you to you too", Bucky said to Oliver, "And all of your other friends. You all contained the damage before we arrived."

"No problem", Matt said.

"It's our job", Oliver said.

"So now I'm going to take the files", Bucky said, "You both can go. You have done a lot."

Matt and Oliver nodded and giving Bucky a respectful salute which he returned, walked off. Bucky went to work on taking the files with him. He also made sure to get the video footage of the fight with Nuke, cutting the part where he talked to Matt and Oliver.

That was darkest night. But like all dark nights, it gave rise to a bright dawn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I guess two more chapters after this. Then this story will be over. I hope you liked the conclusion to the Nuke stuff.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	21. A man without fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fisk and Trask deal with the consequences of their actions. A funeral is held for Father Lantom. Foggy comes up with a great idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.

The arrests of Wilson Fisk and Bolivar Trask had both made the front page headlines. Ray's dying declaration had been considered admissible in court. And some of the soldiers to attack the city had not been killed and they had confessed that he had hired them so Fisk had been charged on that too.

Bolivar Trask too had been charged with illegally developing weapons of mass destruction and for the loss of life and property caused by Nuke.

All of the FBI Agents that had worked for Fisk and Chase had been arrested. The public had demanded that Nadeem not be arrested as his testimony had helped get them convicted and they all considered him a hero. Many even thought he should be the head of the FBI.

It had been proven that Fisk's resources had been used to make the IRS freeze his assets and the bank foreclose his apartment. So all of that was undone and Matt's financial plight was over.

* * *

Matt walked into the Clinton Church. Maggie turned to face him. Both of them were silent for a few moments.

After taking a deep breath, Matt finally broke the silence, "Last time we spoke, I confronted Father Lantom. I was angry. I'd change that if I could."

"If God allowed that, there'd be no future", Maggie pointed out, "Just people endlessly rewriting the past."

"Yeah", Matt said with a sigh, "Believe it or not, I have a friend who can actually do that. But back on point, I think he was trying to tell me that for a long time. His last words were, "Forgive us.""

Turning to him, Maggie asked, "Do you think that's possible?"

There were a few more moments of silence before Matt said, "He told me something, years ago, when this happened", he gestured to his eyes, "That I never forgot. See, I was pretty angry at God and bitter towards his world. How could a loving God blind me?"

After some silence, Matt muttered, "Why?"

"Anyway", Matt started doing gestures with his hand, "He told me God's plan is like a beautiful tapestry. And the tragedy of being human is that we only get to see it from the back. With all the ragged threads and the muddy colors. And we only get a hint at the true beauty that would be revealed if we could see the whole pattern on the other side….. as God does."

There was some silence again as Mat smiled slightly, remembering that day, before speaking again, "Anyway, I've been thinking a lot about it recently, 'cause I realize I've made some bad choices and hurt people that I love without meaning to."

"You don't always know when you start down a false path", Maggie said.

"No, you don't", Matt said, "And that's my point. I realize that if my life had turned out any differently, that I would never have become Daredevil. And although people have died on my watch, people who shouldn't have, there are countless others that have lived. So… maybe it is all part of God's plan."

As Maggie turned to him, he said, "Maybe my life has been exactly as it had to be."

"You have a generous heart, Matthew", Maggie said with a sniff, "To see the good in so much pain."

"Not always", Matt said with a slight smile, "In fact, Father Lantom used to help me with that. Help me see the errors of my ways. I could…. use someone else to help me with that now", Maggie turned to look at him, "Once in a while."

Maggie knew what Matt was implying.

Turning to him, she took a deep breath and said, "I'm a nun, Matthew. Helping is what I was called to do."

Then the two just stood silently as Matt gave a deep sigh of relief, letting out everything he had been holding in for the past few weeks.

* * *

Father Lantom's coffin was laid out in front of the church. Many people were gathered to attend his funeral. All of the clergy was there- the priests and the nuns, Maggie included. Matt, Foggy, Karen, Ellison and Marci were there. Along with them were Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy, Frank. And on Matt's and Oliver's requests- Jessica, Luke and Colleen had attended too.

Matt walked up to the podium and turned to face all the mourners who had gathered. He stood silent for a few moments before taking a deep breath.

"Feels like half of Hell's Kitchen is here today to say goodbye to Father Paul Lantom", Matt said with a smile, "Seems fair. He certainly welcomed everyone here, Catholic or not. And he expected those of us who were to, uh, look for ways to do good in our community. Not even the kids got out of that requirement. I'm sure I'm not the only one who remembers his "suggestion" that we give some of our First Communion money to the poor box."

Everyone chuckled at that.

"And that was his way", Matt continued with a pleasant smile, "To think of the community, and the, uh and the individuals in it. To think in terms of, "What can I give?""

Gesturing to the floor of the church, he said, "He gave his life, right here in this church, protecting others. Standing up to men who used fear as a tool to set neighbors against one another. If Father Lantom had an enemy, I would say it was fear."

Everyone had thoughtful expressions by now due to Matt's eulogy.

Matt continued, "For me, personally, he spent many years trying to get me to face my own fears.

To understand how they enslaved me, how they divided me from the people that I love. He counseled me to transcend my fears, to be brave enough to forgive and see the possibilities of being a man without fear. That was his legacy. And now it's up to all of us to, uh, live up to it."

* * *

Later- Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy, Frank, Jessica, Luke, Colleen, Foggy and Karen walked out from the Church.

"That was nice, what you said", Karen told Matt.

"Yeah, it wasn't just him, you know", Matt said, "It was for all of you, too."

He then said to Oliver, Slade, Roy and Karen, "You all helped me see the truth about myself."

"Ouch", Roy commented.

"How much did that hurt?" Oliver asked jokingly.

"Well, maybe one of these days, I'll forgive you all, too", Matt said, which made everyone chuckle.

"Before my funeral, I hope", Karen joked.

"I'm glad you told me, Karen", Matt said, "About Wesley and your brother."

"Yeah", Karen said, "Well, uh I couldn't live with that lie forever.

"We're all just trying to do more good than harm", Matt said, "And I'd say you're ahead on that score."

"Thank you", Karen said, "All of you."

"No problem, Karen", Frank said.

"Well, guys", Matt said to Jessica, Luke and Colleen, "Thank you for coming to help on such short notice."

"To teach assholes some manners", Jessica commented, "I'll always be around."

"I'll be around too", Luke said, "To help the neighborhood."

"Same", Colleen said.

"So Colleen", Matt asked, "How are you?"

"I am good", Colleen said.

"You know", Luke said, "For some weird reason, I find your glowing sword less creepy than Danny's glowing fist."

"Well, maybe that's because no dragons were involved", Colleen joked, making everyone chuckle.

"What about you, Slade?" Oliver asked.

"Well", Slade said, "I think I will go back and look for Grant first."

"Whatever you do, if you need help, you can call us", Elektra said.

"Yeah, Slade", Roy said, a little surprised at himself, "We will help you if we need."

"Thank you", Slade said sincerely, "I appreciate it."

"And if we find any info on Joe here, we will inform you", Frank said.

Matt nodded firmly at that.

Foggy walked past them and to Marci.

"I was starting to like the idea of being married to the DA", Marci said cheekily with a smirk.

"Pretty sure Blake Tower's not married", Foggy said.

"Yeah, he'll have to get by without me", Marci said jokingly, "You, on the other hand, are in luck. The firm will be thrilled to have you back."

"The thing is, Marci I'm not sure I want that anymore", Foggy said regretfully.

"I was afraid you were going to say something like that", Marci said with a smile.

"You're not mad?" Foggy asked, a little surprised.

"We'll talk about it later", Marci said, "But do I really have to watch you drive your campaign off a cliff?"

"Nah", Foggy said as he walked towards where Tower was giving his speech, "I got that part covered."

Tower was saying, "-That Wilson Fisk is a malignant tumor. Well, the State of New York isn't going to make the same mistake. Everyone knows his game now. Fisk won't manipulate the system again."

"Excuse me, Mr. Tower", Foggy said, getting his attention.

"Mr. Nelson", Tower greeted back.

Foggy walked towards Tower and said, "I wanted you to be the first to hear that I'm officially dropping out of the race for district attorney. The way you stood up to Wilson Fisk was an inspiration to us all."

Holding out his hand, he said, "I'm gonna be voting for you."

Tower shook his hand and said gratefully, "Thank you."

* * *

Later, a small feast was held at the diner owned by Foggy's father. Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy, Frank, Jessica, Luke, Colleen and Karen were all there with Foggy.

"Is that a whiskey neat?" Karen asked Matt as she sat down among them.

"For medicinal purposes", Matt said.

"Mmm-hmm."

"They have some good medicinal properties", Elektra said.

"Well, better than ginger ale", Oliver said.

"Ginger ale?" Roy asked.

"Someone I know drinks that and pretends its alcohol", Oliver said.

"Ew", Jessica commented as she took a swig from her bottle, "What a shitty life the dude must be living? I don't want to be him."

"No you don't", Oliver said.

"Sounds like an interesting fellow", Slade said.

"Sounds like an idiot actually", Frank said, "Unless he cares too much about his diet."

"Sounds to me like he does", Luke said.

"Well, good for him", Colleen said.

Karen then took Matt's drink and sipped it as he asked, "You want me to get you your own?"

"Oh, this one tastes fine", Karen commented.

"Give Matthew his drink back", Elektra said in a mock threatening tone.

"Yeah", Foggy said as he arrived, "Give Matt his drink back."

"Yes", Karen said as she returned it to him and Foggy sat down with them.

"So, I guess you guys heard, Special Agent in Charge Hattley flipped", Karen said, "She corroborated Ray's dying declaration. And on top of that, the mercenaries who survived have confessed to being paid by Fisk."

"We did hear", Matt said.

"It's pretty good", Frank said.

"Hmm", Foggy said, "So, the FBI is getting an enema, Chase is dead, and Fisk is - still breathing."

"Yep", Matt said with a smile, "Still breathing."

"Headed to prison", Karen added, "Again."

"Not exactly what I had in mind", Matt said.

"You trust that he'll keep his word?" Foggy asked.

"I mean, I trust that he loves Vanessa", Matt said, "Long as she's free, he should stay away."

"I saw Fisk only once, which was last night", Oliver said, "But one thing I understood was that while he's a monster, he's an honorable one. So he'll keep the deal intact."

"And if she gets hit by a bus tomorrow?" Karen asked jokingly.

"Yeah", Matt said, "Well, then we'll cross that bridge."

"Why so negative, Karen?" Frank asked jokingly.

"Look who's talking about negativity?" Elektra joked, earning her a mock death glare.

"He's not me", Jessica commented.

"So, how long you gonna stick around?" Foggy asked Matt.

"Actually, I was thinking about moving back into my apartment after I get it renovated", Matt revealed.

"Really?" Karen asked.

"Well", Matt said, "Seeing as it is not being mortgaged, I might as well."

"Okay, so hold on", Elektra said, "You're going to move - back into Matt Murdock's apartment?"

"No, no", Matt said, confusing everyone, "I am going to move into Matt Murdock's and Elektra Natchios' apartment."

"Oh!" Elektra said.

"What do you say?" he asked.

"I say", Elektra said, "Yes!"

"Sweet Christmas", Luke commented on seeing the little display of love.

"I just figured the two together have a healthier life-work balance", Matt said, "And actual friends."

"He's kind of a mooch, though", Karen said.

"Semi-decent lawyer", Foggy said.

"Ooh "Semi-decent"?" Matt asked, "Ouch."

"You do break the law", Karen said, "A lot. And often."

"I am the Mayor and I break the law", Oliver said, "Not a big deal."

"Objection", Matt said to Foggy.

"Sustained", Foggy said before revealing, "I have a crazy idea. I need a new napkin."

"Okay", Roy said as he handed him one.

"Well, he's writing something", Matt said.

"Apparently", Karen said.

"I think I can see what he's writing", Slade said.

Foggy then showed what he had written to them.

He had written-  _'Nelson, Murdock and Page.'_

Karen looked at it, a happy tear in her eye. Everyone else too smiled on looking at it. It just seemed- right.

"What?" Matt asked, pretending to be oblivious, before saying, "Oh, he just wrote all of our names, didn't he?"

"How can you know that?" Foggy asked.

"'Cause I was thinking the same thing", Matt said.

"Okay", Karen said, "Okay, guys, I'm not a lawyer."

"You're one hell of an investigator", Foggy said.

"Hey!" Jessica said as she waved her hand at Foggy's face, "Hello! I am here."

"Yeah, and way more stable than Jessica Jones", Matt joked, making Jessica glare at him.

"He's got a point", Luke said.

Jessica just went back to sipping her bottle, muttering, "Just wait till we get out of here, Murdock."

"It looks right to me", Oliver said, referring the names on the napkin.

"All right, so what? What does that mean?" Karen asked, "We go back to helping people out of a crappy office, getting paid in chickens?"

"I think Theo would let us work out of here, to start", Foggy said.

"At least we'd have a place to sell the chickens", Matt joked, making everyone laugh.

"So what do you think?" Foggy asked.

"Why the hell not?" Matt said.

Everyone raised their glasses as Matt toasted, "To Nelson, Murdock & Page."

"Page, Murdock & Nelson", Karen joked and laughed.

"Hang on a minute", Foggy said.

"That actually sounds better", Frank said.

"Yeah", Matt agreed, "It actually has a nice ring to it."

"Poor Foggy", Roy joked, making everyone laughed.

That moment, they saw a man and a woman wearing caps walking to them. They took chairs and sat down with them. They took off their caps, revealing themselves to be Bucky Barnes and Natasha Romanoff.

"Captain", Matt said to Bucky before turning to Natasha, "Miss Romanoff."

"Mr. Murdock", both acknowledged simultaneously.

"So what are you both doing here?" Frank asked.

"I guess they want to experience the joys of alcohol", Jessica commented.

"Actually", Bucky said, "We are here to make a proposal."

"What kind of proposal?" Luke asked.

"Would you all like to join the Avengers?" Natasha asked, "It would be good."

"Well", Matt said, "I am figuring out my life right now. And I need to help the neighborhood right now."

"I drink, investigate and sleep", Jessica said, "So no thanks."

"I have to run a nightclub", Luke said.

"I'll think about it", Colleen said.

"I work better alone", Frank said.

"So I guess all are nos", Bucky commented, "No problem."

"Yeah, but if you need us", Matt said, "We will help."

"Good to know", Natasha said.

"Captain Barnes", Oliver said, attracting his attention, "Do you still have that man with the shield and the woman with the silencing device as your captives?"

"Yes", Bucky said, "Why?"

"I have no idea how to explain this", Roy said.

"Let's just say the Multiverse theory is true", Oliver said to them.

"You mean the one that says there are many Earths?" Natasha asked.

"Yes", Slade said, "Seriously."

"So what does that have to do with them?" Bucky asked.

"They are from our world", Oliver said, "They worked for a crime-lord. I think I would need them to come with me and confess to anything he did so the required people can be put in prison."

"Sounds fair", Natasha said.

"Will do", Bucky said, "And if we need you, we will call."

The two then got up and walked off.

"You know?" Oliver said to Matt, "Thanksgiving is close. You want to come with us to our Earth?"

"To celebrate?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, well", Oliver said, "Last year, me and Barry agreed that we all should hang out even if there are no world-ending threats. So we decided Thanksgiving would be a good time. You all can come."

"We will", Matt said, "Would be good."

* * *

Two days later.

Ray's eyes opened. He put his hand to his forehead and felt a bandage there.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine", Matt said.

"You're lucky to be alive", Oliver said.

Ray adjusted his eyes and then saw the two standing there.

"You both?" he asked.

"Yeah", Matt said.

"What happened?" Ray asked.

"Well, when you didn't reach the safehouse, Seema told Brett", Oliver explained, "Brett told Foggy, who told us. We all together figured out where you'd have gone. So I quickly went there and saved you."

"Thank you", Ray said gratefully.

"You saved our friends", Matt said, "Consider it repayment."

"So what's gonna happen now?" Ray asked.

"Well", Matt said, "Your dying declaration worked. So most of the agents are in jail. Including Hattley. And-"

"And what?" Ray asked.

"Well", Oliver said, "It's good news for you."

"What?" Ray asked again.

"Due to public demand", Matt said, "You have been promoted to head of FBI as soon as you're released from the hospital."

"Don't tell me", Ray said, unable to believe the news.

There was a silence after which Ray said gratefully, "I can't thank you all enough for what you did for me and my family. But I will try my best to right all my wrongs by heading the FBI."

"Good", Matt said as he and Oliver started walking away, "There's someone here to see you."

The two walked out as Seema and Sami walked in. The family's happy, tearful reunion nearly brought happy tears into Matt's and Oliver's eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So one more chapter now and it is done.
> 
> Please review. I always appreciate your feedback.


	22. Thanksgiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All the heroes celebrate Thanksgiving together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Daredevil, Arrow or anything else you may recognize
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos, hits, comments and bookmarks.
> 
> This is the last chapter of this.

Star City, Earth-1

Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Roy, Frank, Jessica and Luke returned to Earth-1 with Kodiak and Honor as their prisoners.

Team Arrow was delighted to see them all again. Rene was happy to see his other mentor well. Jessica, Elektra and Dinah renewed their friendship.

Luke and John too renewed their friendship and so did Matt and John.

Later- Kodiak and Silencer were interrogated by Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Slade, Frank and Laurel and after some torture, confessed about Diaz's crimes and everyone that was on his payroll and also gave evidence.

Oliver managed to get the evidence to the required authorities and half of the SCPD was put away along with DA Arnad. The Longbow Hunters were put on the Lian Yu prison that belonged to ARGUS by Lyla. They were kept in the cells with the same design and structure as the cell Chase had been out in.

* * *

Matt, Oliver and Frank found Slade all packed up and ready to leave.

"Going already?" Oliver asked.

"Yeah, kid", Slade said, "I am going to ask Adeline about Grant."

"Good luck, Slade", Oliver said sincerely.

"Yeah, good luck", Matt said sincerely too.

"Same from me", Frank said sincerely.

"Thank you", Slade said as he shook hands with the three of them.

"And remember", Frank said, "If we find out anything about Joe, we will tell you."

"Yeah, we will", Matt said.

"Thank you", Slade said again, "All of you. Until next time."

Slade then nodded and walked away as the three looked at him.

* * *

Central City, Thanksgiving Day

The Legends had arrived on the Waverider and everyone was gathered there to celebrate. Many of them were happy to renew their acquaintanceship.

"So, how's the Devil doing?" Sara asked Matt.

"The Devil is fine", Matt said, "But he would like to rest now."

"Well, all need rest", Sara said, "Even devils."

"I always need rest", Jessica commented.

"Our friend Mick does too", Sara said.

As if on cue, Mick spoke from behind, "Hey hot-ass, how you doing?"

"Speak of the Devil", Matt commented.

"Hi, asshole", Jessica said with a smirk.

"Hey", Barry greeted Oliver.

"Barry", Oliver greeted happily.

The two friends shared a hug.

"So how was your trip to Matt's Earth?" Barry asked, "I admit, didn't see much of it."

"Well", Oliver said, "It was an interesting trip. Pretty unpredictable world. And I heard you and Caitlin are dating."

"We are", Barry said.

"What happened between you and Iris?" Oliver asked.

"Well", Barry said, "I realized her treatment of me was actually horrible. She treated me like crap. I have too much self-respect to be in a relationship like that."

"I didn't know she was capable of that", Oliver muttered, "Well, good for you."

"And because of her, I became this selfish jackass for whom everything else was a second priority", Barry said, "So I feel very relieved now."

"I am happy for you and Caitlin", Oliver said.

"Thank you", Barry said, "Though I have nightmares of Iris some times."

"What kind of nightmares?" Oliver asked.

"Uhhhh", Barry said, "She uh, overreacts to our breakup, so uh, she steals Snart's cold gun and to get revenge on me, decides to hurt my friends, you and Matt."

"What the hell, Barry?" Oliver said, a little amused, "What kind of nightmare is that?"

"She then teams up with Fisk and Chase", Barry said, "But Felicity manages to take them all down somehow. And it always ends with Caitlin comforting me and Sara comforting Mick as Iris defiled his partner's legacy by using his gun."

After a few moments of silence, Oliver laughed so loudly Barry thought he was going crazy.

"What?" Barry asked, "It's not a joke."

"I know", Oliver said in between laughs, "But it's too damn funny!"

"So", Barry asked after Oliver was done laughing, "What about you? You dating someone?"

At that question, Oliver involuntarily glanced at Laurel, who gave him a sweet smile before sipping her drink. Barry noticed that.

"My advice, Oliver", Barry said, "Go for it."

Laurel felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see it was Sara.

"Uh, hi", Laurel said awkwardly, "This must be weird for you."

"It is", Sara said, "But I just wanted to know. Are you anything like my sister?"

"Not much", Laurel said, "But I am trying to be a good person like she was."

"Well", Sara said, "I'm sure she would be proud of you."

"Matt", Cisco said as he walked up to him.

"Hey, Cisco", Matt said with a smile.

"I just wanted to say", Cisco said, "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Matt asked.

"I made the interdimensional extrapolator that allowed Chase to go to your Earth", Cisco said, "I mean, I could have outwitted him. But he threatened my family, and my mind just, it just couldn't work. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, Cisco", Matt said in a forgiving tone as he put his hand on Cisco's shoulder, "You just wanted to save your family. Besides, Chase is gone. It's all in the past now."

After a few moments, Cisco gave a firm nod, accepting Matt's forgiveness.

"But still", Cisco said, "I will do something for you."

"Well", Matt said, "Oliver convinced me to bring my damaged suit here for repairs. And I heard you are the expert in that."

"Oh, totally", Cisco said, "I will do that."

"Hey, Matt."

Matt turned around to see Kara.

"Kara", Matt said happily, "It's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you too", Kara said happily.

"So how's life, Kara?" Barry asked as he walked up to her with Oliver.

"Not very good", Kara said, "But I will manage."

"Like you said, hardship is what makes us stronger", Oliver said, "It will do the same for you."

"It did that for me very recently", Matt said.

"Well, thank you", Kara said happily.

"Feeling the group hug again?" Barry asked.

"Every time Barry", Oliver mock grumbled as the four hugged.

"So", John asked Luke, "Forgot to ask, how's life?"

"No idea", Luke said, "Just run a nightclub from where I monitor criminal activities. I'm kinda like a 'Sheriff' now."

"Well, something good will probably come out of that", John said, "Hopefully."

Later- Matt, Oliver, Elektra, Roy, Frank, Jessica, Luke, Barry, Cisco, Caitlin, Wally, Laurel, John, Rene, Dinah, Curtis, Thea, Felicity, Kara, Sara, Mick, Ray, Jax, Stein, Nate, Amaya and Zari sat around a table.

"So", Sara asked, "Anyone thankful for anything?"

"Thankful for beer", Mick said, "And hot asses."

"Thankful for beer too", Jessica said, "And assholes to verbally spar with."

"Damn!" Rene commented.

"Thankful to be here", Kara said.

"Thankful for forgiveness", Cisco said, giving Matt a glance.

"Thankful to have everything I want", Barry said as he gave Caitlin a glance.

"Same", Caitlin said with a smile.

"Thankful to have mind off other things by having fun here", Luke said.

"Well", Oliver said as he glanced at Laurel for a fraction of a second, "Thankful for second chances."

"Thankful for my rebuilt life", Matt said with a smile.

"Same", Elektra said.

"So I guess everyone is thankful for something", Thea said, "I'm just thankful to have a happy life."

Oliver gave a smile on hearing that.

Everyone said what they were thankful for one by one.

"Well then", Sara toasted after everyone was done, "To all of us having fun once in a while."

"Cheers", everyone raised their glasses and drank.

* * *

A day later

Matt, Elektra, Jessica, Luke and Frank were prepared to go back.

"Hey, Matt", Cisco said, "Say hello to your new suit."

He then took off the cloth, revealing the new suit.

It was a darker shade of red than before, almost maroon, and very slightly less armored. But it looked like it would provide better movement. And on the center was fashioned- DD. The D on the left was a little over the D on the right and both overlapped.

Matt felt in and said, "Cisco, this is amazing. You're one hell of a genius."

"Well, thanks", Cisco said, "But that's not all."

Cisco then handed Matt his Billy Club, which now looked very different.

"You can disguise this as a blind man's cane in your civilian garb now", Cisco said, "And it can do more than just help you grapple or fight by throwing. You can now use it as a flail, nunchaku, eskrima, or manrikigusari-like weapon. Basically a long rope/chain weapon with two weights on its ends. It also has a retractable microphone, a miniature tape recorder and a chamber for firing projectiles."

"Whoa!" Matt couldn't describe how awed he was, "Cisco, this is….. I don't know what to say. Thank you. This is beyond amazing."

"It's the least I could do for you", Cisco said with a smile.

"Well, it was very nice of you", Matt said as the two shared a hug. He then put the suit and club inside his case.

And then- Matt hugged Barry, Cisco and Caitlin goodbye and finally faced Oliver.

"Like I said the last time", Matt said, "If you need us, we'll be there."

"We'll be there too if you need us", Oliver said with a smile.

And then Matt and Oliver gave each other a deep, brotherly hug before letting go. Oliver gave hugs to Elektra and Luke too but simply shook hands with Frank and Jessica.

This time, Cisco opened a breach for them.

Elektra, Frank, Jessica and Luke went through it. Matt faced Oliver, Barry, Cisco and Caitlin and nodded. When they nodded back, he went through the breach as Cisco closed it.

"Well", Barry said, "It was good seeing them again."

With a smile, Oliver said, "It sure was."

"Bye, Oliver", Barry said as he waved along with Cisco and Caitlin.

"Bye, Team Flash", Oliver said as he waved back.

Barry, Cisco and Caitlin then walked back into STAR Labs while Oliver started his journey back to Star City with his team.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was the end of this story.
> 
> I would like to thank Nicochan11 and Bl4ckHunter for the idea and some concepts of the 'Iris nightmare.'
> 
> I hope you liked this.
> 
> I think Matt got one hell of an upgrade. Getting his comic book suit and club.
> 
> The next story in this series will be my version of 'Crisis on Earth-X.' And unlike the actual crossover, my story won't have stupid, illogical fan-service moments and meaningless romantic subplots. Instead of before the midseason finales, it will take place 2 months after the season finales are done. And the wedding will be a SnowBarry wedding due to obvious reasons.
> 
> There's also another planned sequel which will be a Punisher/Deathstroke team-up story where they will try to find Joe.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who favorited, followed or reviewed this. Thank you to everyone who supported me in different ways when I wrote this.
> 
> It has been a pleasure.
> 
> Until next time.
> 
> Aragorn II Elessar


End file.
